All's Fair in Love and War and Other Things Will Shakespeare Wrote
by PresidentOfTheBadGuyFanClub
Summary: All the world's a stage and Oswald Cobblepot plays the role of hero once, unaware that the girl he helps on a whim will become a major player in his own story. Rated T for some language and mild insinuations. Better safe than sorry!
1. Chapter 1

I own nothing but mysterious girl who will have a name by the next chapter.

CHAPTER 1

"We know what we are, but not what we may be."

The high pitched cry mingled with the already buzzing streets of Gotham and Oswald was surprised he had even heard it. He did not rush to see what was happening, sounds of terror were practically white noise in this city, but as he walked past the alley he did bother to glance down it to see what was happening. He was thankful he did for it gave him just the split second he needed to step out of the way as two thugs came barreling past him and into the streets.

With a slight gasp he jumped back, barely avoiding getting run over by them. He watched them disappear into the crowded street giving a slight chuckle. Another mugging in Gotham. Must be a Monday, he thought to himself. With curiosity he glanced behind him to see who the unfortunate victim had been, and could immediately see why they had chosen their target.

She was very pretty, but more than that, her expensive looking clothes were very pretty. Or at least they had been, he mused as he watched her struggle to lift herself from the filthy puddle she had been pushed into. Her dress was now soaked and dingy, but underneath the muddy water he could still see its shiny silver glitter. It would have reminded him of something Ms. Mooney would wear, if it hadn't been of a slightly more modest cut. Although now as she lifted herself to her feet on shaky, high heeled shoes the wet fabric clung to her figure, and took on a transparent aspect, revealing the slight outline of lacy undergarments and leaving little to the imagination. Oswald was transfixed by her as he watched her take a shaky step before hissing in pain and collapsing to lean against a metal dumpster.

He wondered if he should call out to her and he felt his mind and his emotions split. This wasn't exactly a city for heroes and he couldn't help but feel she had gotten what she deserved. For a young lady to wander around Gotham alone in the evening, especially in a dress that might as well have been made of money she had honestly been asking for it. But he couldn't help but feel his heart twinge for the girl. She looked so tragic and vulnerable there, shivering and injured in the alleyway and he could help but feel sympathy gnawing at him because he knew exactly how cold the water was and how much it hurt to be knocked down on to the hard concrete.

"Sir?"

He was jolted from his thoughts by the soft call and realized that while his eyes had been trained on her soaked figure, her wide doe-eyes had spotted him. Even from several feet away he could see the pleading in them as she stared at him expectantly through the loose hairs that had fallen from her otherwise put together updo. The look of fear and helplessness radiating off of the fresh and pretty face made up his mind for him. Although he would never consider himself to be anyone's knight in shining armor, Mother raised a gentleman and this was obviously a damsel in distress if he had ever seen one.

"Are you alright Miss?" he called back to her, walking cautiously towards her. It was always best to be cautious in this city.

"Yeah…" she said, bracing herself against the dumpster and standing on one foot trying to lean down to inspect the other. "I think my ankle is twisted though."

As he approached he realized that she was shorter than him, smaller than him in general. Even though Oswald was barely beneath the average height of most men, he was constantly surrounded by tall, beefy men that made him seem little by comparison. Now as he stood over this frail and pitiful girl, he couldn't help but feel his ego swell just a bit. It wasn't often that he felt himself to be in a position of power and now, he realized that he was in control. He could be this girl's savior. He could also easily overtake her if he so chose. Not that he wanted to but there was something thrilling in knowing that his choosing not to was the only thing that was currently protecting her. Like a baby bird that had fallen from a nest, her life was in his hands, and the thought of that caused a smile to stretch across his face.

The girl was oblivious to the thoughts running through his head and was only aware that he had made his way to her. "They took my purse. All my money, my phone…" She straightened herself back up to address him and he was surprised at the way that she showed no wariness of him. In fact, she met his smile with a small, grateful one of her own. You would think that a girl who was just mugged would have learned her lesson about not trusting strangers but she seemed relieved that he was there. The poor naïve little fool. He realized that it really was up to him that this vulnerable little thing made it back to its nest. "You don't have a phone I could use do you?"

"No miss, I'm sorry. But I can give you some change for a payphone," he offered, digging in his pockets for a couple of quarters. She smiled and tried to take a step closer to him but her ankle gave out and she fell forward with a small gasp. Oswald instinctively caught her by the shoulders as she fell against his chest. As she tilted her head up to look at him he became extremely aware of how close their faces were and just how red and soft her lips look, how big and brown her eyes were, how warm she felt against him despite her cold, dripping clothes. He felt his face flush and, in a panic, he straightened her back up so that she was leaned against the dumpster again, creating a distance between them, but his hands still lingering on her shoulders.

Seeming to sense his discomfort, her lip twitched up at the corner. "Sorry for falling for you like that…" she muttered with a small wink. He was caught off guard by her sudden flirtatiousness and only gaped at her a moment before letting out a strangled laugh, feeling his cheeks heat up. Suddenly he didn't feel so in control anymore and felt himself growing increasingly nervous under her playful gaze. She let out a small, breathy laugh. Her eyes appeared softer and he realized that she was trying to alleviate his anxious demeanor. He returned her look with a shy smile and glanced down at his feet. That's when he noticed her ankle. As he knelt down to inspect it he could clearly see that she was right. It was obviously twisted and already bruising as it swelled against the straps of her heels. He gently took it in his hand and heard her hiss in pain above him.

"It's definitely twisted." He confirmed, tilting his head to look up at her. "Do you live close? I can help you get a cab."

"That would be wonderful if those crooks had left me the money to pay for one," she muttered, the wounded look returning.

"I can pay for it." Oswald offered quickly. As soon as the words left his mouth he internally groaned. Like he could afford it himself. Why had he said that? But as those wide eyes met his in shock he knew exactly why.

"You don't have to do that."

"But I want to." At that her expression became one of surprised gratefulness and he could feel the former feelings of control coming back to him filling him with an unfamiliar confidence. He offered her a smile and surprised himself by taking her hand and helping her to lean against him to walk. "Besides, what kind of a man would I be if I left you to find a way home in this state?"

As he said the words, he became once again aware of the transparency of her dress and the way her body shivered against him. He quickly shrugged off his jacket and draped it around her before beginning to help her down the alley.

She willingly leaned into him, and once they reached the street, she looked up at him with a grateful smile. "Sir I really can't thank you enough-"

"It's no problem," he cut her off, holding up his hand and shaking his head and smiling but she continued nonetheless as he tried to call a cab.

"No really, in this city I was lucky enough that someone bothered to even check on me, let alone do all this. Honestly most men probably would have even tried to.." she let her voice trail off. He glanced back at her and he couldn't break his gaze from her eyes. She was looking at him like he was some kind of savior. Some kind of protector. He had never had anyone look at him like this and now here was this girl, beautiful and kind, and looking at him like…

The cab pulled up, snapping him back to reality. "It…it's n-no p-p-problem." He stammered, his face getting warm again. He quickly avoided her eyes and rummaged through his pocket for his wallet, pulling out the cab fare and handing it to her.

She took it from him, without looking away from his face, letting her fingertips slide over his hand as she did so. Did she do that on purpose? "What did you say your name was again?"

He blinked and willed himself not to stutter. "I didn't, Oswald Cobblepot." Good, he thought, giving himself a mental pat on the back.

She smiled. "Oswald," she repeated, as if testing the name out. She suddenly lifted herself onto her toes with her good foot and, leaning against his chest for support, kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you Oswald." She said it softly and he felt his heart speed up. With one last smile at him she slid into the cab. "I'll be sure to get this back to you," she assured him, indicating the coat.

Oswald didn't respond, still taken aback. She shut the door and a realization hit him. "Wait!" he shouted. " I didn't catch your name!"

She looked a little surprised, but then her eyes twinkled with amusement as the corner of her lip lifted. "You have no idea who I am," she mused. Oswald face contorted in confusion but before another word could pass between them, the cab pulled away. He watched it go, dumbfounded. Who was she? Still feeling the lingering touch of her kiss, he pressed his palm to his cheek where her lips had been and felt a dopey grin cross his face. It didn't last long, however as heard the Gotham clock tower chime. Six 'o' clock, he realized in horror. He was late for work. He began rushing down the street towards Fish Mooney's club suddenly aware of the fact that he was only in his white button-up. He immediately cursed himself for giving the girl his coat. It was bad enough that he would be late, but late and under dressed? Miss Mooney would not be happy about this.

* * *

 **Hey guys! First off, thank you so much for reading! I'd love to hear some feedback, good or bad, so if you have the time I'd really appreciate it! This is my first shot at fanfiction but I've had these ideas in my head for a while and I couldn't not write them. I'm a huge fan of the show, especially of the brilliant actor Robin Lord Taylor, and I just really love what he's done with Penguin. He and the other actors just really breathed life into these larger-than-life characters and made them so real. But anyways, enough rambling! I've got the next chapter up already and I'll be updating them quickly as I go. Thanks again!**


	2. Chapter 2

I own nothing but the mysterious girl who will have a name by paragraph two of this chapter.

CHAPTER 2

"A pair of star-crossed lovers"

The cab pulled up to Fish Mooney's and the girl inside wrapped the coat tighter around herself as she climbed out into the brisk air. She couldn't help but enjoy the musky scent of it. It kind of smelled like…tea? As she sauntered into the club was greeted immediately by a warmer temperature and warmer lighting. She had always liked the dim red glow of the club, even when she was just a little girl. It had always seemed so thrilling and mysterious, like something straight out of a mystery novel. She rarely got to visit this place anymore but she was always happy to see that it never seemed to change.

"Nicholetta, is that you?" she heard a low voice pur and turned to see Fish herself striding past the bar to meet her, her right hand Butch flanking her as usual. She watched as both familiar faces greeted her with warm smiles which she happily returned.

"Nicki…and Yes ma'am," the girl corrected, laughing slightly at the sound of her full name. People rarely called her by it but Fish always seemed insistent. _When you have a good name, you keep it_. "I'm sorry I'm late Ms. Mooney. I-"

"What in God's name are you wearing child?" The smile on Fish's face had dropped, replaced by a look of disgust and horror at the girl's worn jacket and dingy dress. Nicki became hyper aware of her current state but couldn't help but giggle. She was sure she looked a sight.

"I sort of ran into a couple muggers on my way here-" she started to explain but Butch cut her off with a hearty laugh.

"So I guess we gotta go find the bodies then?" he said with a smile and a wink.

Nicki's smile got a little tighter. "No, I let them take my stuff and go. I was sure they were your run of the mill crooks but…I didn't want to take a chance on taking out some of Falcone's men outside my…jurisdiction. I've already called my brother though. He's taking care of them." Butch's joking demeanor subsided and an awkward tension arose between the three. Fish was quick to put an end to it however, clapping her hands together and suggesting that the younger girl find something a little less…dirty.

Nicki was quick to comply, and quick to take advantage of the opportunity. "Maybe something a little less restricting too?" she suggested, tugging at the tight sequenced material with obvious discomfort.

Butch was all teeth again, throwing his head back and chuckling. "I bet those muggers didn't even lay a hand on you. I bet you threw yourself into the puddle afterwards just to get it wet. Anything to get out of wearing a dress, right Nick?"

"You caught me Butch," she returned with a wink and joined in his laughter. Fish allowed herself a small chuckle but was clearly more interested in moving things along, giving Butch a pointed look that easily translated to _our guest is still wet and cold and dripping gutter water on the carpet._ Without losing his playful attitude, he motioned with his hand for her to follow him, but before she could get too far, Fish stopped her, catching ahold of the sleeve of the worn jacket. Reading her puzzled expression, Nicki began to tell the two about the man in the alley.

"Well who would have though…a white knight in Gotham." Fish mused, cocking an eyebrow as she examined the jacket.

"I know," Nicki agreed, with a hint of adoration in her voice. "Gave me a coat and cab and didn't ask for a thing. I'm going to have to find the guy to get this back to him. It might take a little searching but I have a name so it shouldn't be too hard."

"Which was…?" Mooney drawled. But before Nicki could answer, the door crashing open and all attention was captured by a disheveled looking man stumbling in, out of breath and stammering.

"M-M-Ms. Mooney! I'm s-s-so sorry I-" Oswald froze in his tracks as he was met with

the sharp frown of his boss

the arched eyebrow of her henchman

and a very familiar set of brown, doe-eyes.

Nicki's face was full of amusement at the sight of this new arrival. "Oswald…"she said his name as if it were the answer to a question, or the punchline to a joke. Shooting a grin over her shoulder to Fish and Butch she remarked, "Well…that was much easier than I thought."

* * *

 **So this one was a little short but when a good cliff-hanger presents itself...**

 **Thanks for reading chapter number two and I'll be sure to get the next one up quick, fast, and in a hurry! Feedback is always appreciated!**


	3. Chapter 3

I own nothing but little miss Nicki.

CHAPTER THREE

"He who has injured thee was wither stronger or weaker than thee."

As Oswald stumbled into the club he was expecting a lot of things. An angry scolding from Fish. Judgment of his state of dress. The mockery of Fish's "boys".

But one thing he never expected was to see the cause of his tardiness standing there, still wrapped up in his coat. All he could do was gape at her. Who was this girl, and why on Earth was she here. Was she here? Was he delusional from fatigue after practically running the four blocks to the club?

"Oswald." There was his name on her lips again. She smiled and muttered something to Fish and Butch which he could hear, or didn't comprehend. And then, as if she were a dream, she glided across the floor towards him. Her heels didn't even make a sound, or perhaps they did and he simply couldn't hear it over the blood rushing in his ears as she slipped his coat from her slender figure, exposing the still slightly transparent dress. Now only a foot away from him, she tilted her head up to meet his eyes and held out the coat to him. His clammy hands reached up to take it and he gulped as she took his hand and draped his coat across his arm. "I promised I'd return it," she said, giving his wrist a squeeze before letting go. "I was just telling Fish about what gentleman you were for helping me out earlier."

Glancing up towards Fish he saw a pleased, albeit surprised look on her face and couldn't help the dopey grin from crossing his. The look of appraisal from both of these women filled him with a triumph he didn't experience often. Unfortunately, it was short lived.

"The Penguin?!" Butch guffawed, slapping his hand on the bar and giving a howl of a laugh. "You gotta be kiddin me!"

Oswald's face darkened as he glared at Butch, humiliation washing over him. "I've asked you not to call me that," he said in a low, blank tone, but Nicki could sense the menace in it all the same, compelling her to take a small step back. Butch was oblivious, or more likely didn't care, and continued to laugh. "It's a sad day when the best hero a girl has is Penguin."

Oswald ducked his head and glared at him through his brows, his cheeks turning red. Fish didn't hide the grin from her face as Butch mocked her umbrella boy but called him down all the same. "Now, now Butch. Our little Oswald is full of surprises." Even as she scolded her right hand, she didn't bother to wipe the smirk from her face and condescension dripped in her every word. Oswald raised his head slightly and pressed his lips together tight knowing better than to speak a word against his boss.

"I'll say," Butch continued. "I didn't know the little guy had it in him-"

"Clothes." Nicki's voice cut in. Oswald turned his attention back to her, and saw her face riddled with sympathy. She held his eyes for only a moment before turning back to the now silent Butch. "You said you'd help me find some dry clothes?"

Butch sensed that he was being shut down and sobered up as he nodded to her, immediately becoming all business. "Of course. Right this way Miss."

The room was tense with the sudden shift, and Nicki seemed to catch on to this. "And I get pants too, right?" she added, lightening the mood once again and causing the good-natured grin to return to the man's face.

"Sure thing Nick. C'mon."

Fish shook her head and gave a small breath of a laugh before sauntering off to her office, leaving Oswald alone. He snarled as he shrugged on his coat, frustrated and embarrassed at his treatment in front of this girl. Nicki? Is that her name? He still didn't know who she was but it didn't matter much now after Butch's teasing. And that sympathetic look. It burned into him and made him feel even worse. It was bad enough that he had to be treated with such disrespect, but then for her to look at him like he was some pitiful creature that she should feel sorry for? No, he didn't much care who this new girl was, but he was certain that he hoped she wouldn't be staying around for long.


	4. Chapter 4

CHAPTER FOUR

"The earth has music for those who listen."

Her laughter drifted across the crowded club, luring Oswald to take his eyes off his ledger to glance her way. She was four tables away from him where he sat at the bar, balancing the finances, but still he could hear her plain as day. To be fair, she and the rest of Mooney's boys at the table were being unnecessarily loud as they joked and drank. Although she was still nursing the same glass she had gotten an hour ago (not that Oswald would admit to noticing of course) she was certainly keeping up with Butch and his crew in conversation. It was captivating to see her, so small among all of the behemoth men yet without any question as to whether or not she belonged at their table. She was leaned back in her chair, looking perfectly at ease as she practically glittered with life. The Penguin sighed, if only he could emulate that attitude.

He tried to turn his attention back to his book, but found that it kept wondering back to their table with every uproarious burst of laughter. "-the kid, ACTUALLY tries to take my bike! The poor guys never even been on a motorcycle and doesn't know the first thing about driving it. I hear it start and see him through the window I end up dropping off the balcony onto the back and manage to straighten up before he wrecks it."

The men are all laughs and Butch wipes tears from his eyes, "I bet Ol' Frankie about lost it during all this," he choked out.

Penguin couldn't see her as clearly as the big, dark haired man beside her rocked with laughter, putting her in and out of his field of vision. He thought he saw her nod in response though. "So we get it stopped and the kid all but just falls off my bike…and starts thanking me! Can you believe it? Thanks me for saving his life." She takes a drink from her glass, curling her nose slightly at the taste. "And I say, you better thank me! You almost owed me a new bike." The boys burst into laughter again and Oswald feels himself smile a little in spite of himself.

The laughter dies down and one of the guys, the blonde one with the scar on his cheek, suddenly makes a pained expression and Oswald realizes to his own amusement that he is thinking. "So wait," blondie asks. "Why didn't you ride your bike here?"

Nicki rolled her eyes and propped her elbows up on the table. "My brother took it."

"Geez again? Why doesn't he just get his own?" Butch asks.

"Well why would he when apparently mine is for us to share?" she returned with a wry smile.

"Yeah, well I know I wouldn't want to be the one to fight him for it," one of the Mooney's goons added.

Nicki flashed him a knowing smile. "Vic can be a little…intimidating, somtimes-" A couple of the guys snorted as if she had just told them a joke. Oswald frowned. Vic? Had he heard that name before? "But I've never had a problem with holding my own against him."

Butch finished his beer with one gulp before slapping hit down on the table. "Whadda I tell you guys? This girl is nails!" He exclaimed, draping a heavy arm around her shoulder, causing her to lurch forward slightly. "Nails! Didn't I say that?" He removed his arm, reclining back and chuckling, seeming to get nostalgic. An unfamiliar sight. As his laughter died down, he looked at her with slight adoration, jabbing a finger in her direction. "You know Fish really wanted to keep you," he drawled. "We thought about fighting your dad about it but the old men had their minds made up."

The ledger book was now forgotten as Oswald trained his eyes on the girl. Keep her? He began, thinking back, trying to remember if Fish had mentioned her before. He had overhead that a guest was coming, someone important to Falcone. Nothing much more than that came this memory though. She seemed to be well-known by Fish and her men, but she had never been there as long as Oswald had worked there. Had she?

He ran his eyes over her bright and innocent face, the sunny grin, her reddish-brown hair spilling down the back of the gold-hued jumpsuit she had borrowed from fish. It was way too big for her, but still managed to hang on her small frame in a flattering way. She seemed so out of place. A kitten among tigers. No, he would definitely have remembered her.

A clicking tongue stole him from his thoughts. Turning quickly he saw Fish perched on the bar stool beside him, eyebrow quirked. His face heated up as he realized he had been staring and he immediately dug his pointed nose back into the ledger. "Just because a girl bats her eyelashes at you doesn't mean you have to ogle at her," Fish purred. Oswald kept to the book, giving her a sharp nod and refusing to look up from the numbers. If he thought that she would leave it at that however, he was sorely mistaken. "Boy!" she said sharply. His head jerked up to meet her gaze. Her lips were twisted to the side and her eyes intense but not cold. One taloned finger raised to his face and he felt his heart beat quicken. It took all of his will power to not wince away from her touch, unsure of what she would do.

As she gently ran her finger along his cheekbone, he felt his breath rush out of him, unaware that he had been holding it. When she spoke again, her tone was warm and motherly, but the hint of warning still remained. "Trust me, my little penguin," she lifted his chin with her finger, forcing him to keep eye contact with her. "Our little Nicki is not someone you want to get mixed up with."


	5. Chapter 5

I own nothing but Nicki.

CHAPTER FIVE

"Have more than you show and speak less than you know."

Nicki glanced at the clock above the bar and gave a small sigh. It wasn't that she wasn't enjoying herself. In truth, it was great to catch up with Butch, and having the opportunity to talk to men who didn't work for her father was nice for a change of pace as well. Those men were always so careful with her and knew better than to let her drink. She was always careful when she had the opportunity to drink since she didn't often, but she still relished getting to do so. No, she was having a great time, but it would have been better if her reason for being there wasn't looming over her. Falcone was due to come tonight and discuss her future, and if it went anything like the talk with her father, well, it wasn't a conversation se was looking forward to.

She had grown up in the world of organized crime, and she wanted out. It wasn't exactly the life she took on by choice and now that she was 18 the reigns were finally in her hands. Her father had expected ot "pass on the family business" and she was much more reluctant to take it on than he had hoped. Now she had to explain herself to Falcone as well.

Catching her gaze, Butch gave her a light, playful punch on the shoulder. "Boss man should be here soon," he assured her, seeming to sense her apprehension. "It's only 11 and there were some issues on the waterfront today."

She nodded in response and turned her attention back to the blond mans story. What was his name? Kirk? Something like that anyways. His animated story about hanging some poor soul out of a window by his foot was…fascinating…but she could feel her attention begin to wander.

She could see the man, Oswald, at the bar, his figure hunched over a book. Probably something for the club. She watched as he alternated between scribbling in the book and raising the pen to his mouth as he worked. His black hair fell into his eyes, hiding the ice blue orbs she remembered so clearly. How they could appear so inviting, or hostile, but always so alive among his sharp features and pale skin. He began to drum his fingers against the bar in thought and she remembered them as well. How they had felt when they brushed against hers, held her by the shoulders, pressed gently against her ankle. She could see why the others made fun of him. He was on the shorter side and very slender which made him appear downright scrawny next to most of the men in the room. And his pointed nose and odd hairstyle left little to the imagination in regards to why they referred to him as Penguin. Yes he was very odd in demeanor, but there was something endearing about all of it and this unique individual had certainly captivated her attention.

Realizing that she was staring she quickly averted her gaze and pretend to laugh at…whatever it was the others were laughing about. Luckily she didn't have to pretend to have been paying attention because Butch began indicating over her head towards the bar. Following his gesture, she saw a man in a servers uniform holding up a phone in her direction. Excusing herself from the table she sauntered to the bar and took the phone.

"Nick?" a familiar voice came through the receiver.

"Vic," she answered, her heart already dropping. She knew what this would be about.

"I'm still at the waterfront with my girls and Falcone. This has turned into a bigger mess than we expected so he's going to have to meet with you Friday instead."

"I see you've been promoted to personal secretary for the Don," she joked back dryly, failing to hide her disappointment.

"Nicki-" the voice started in a familiar, appeasing tone.

"It's fine," she cut him off, pinching the bridge of her nose. "It's just, I just want this to all be over."

"I know," the voice clipped back, suddenly seeming distracted. She heard the distinct sound of a gun being cocked and took that as her cue.

"Go to work," she said, trying to make her tone a little cheerier. "I'll still be ready to complain when you're done."

The line went dead and she gave a soft chuckle at his abruptness. Hanging the phone back up on the wall, she realized that the only other person at the bar was Oswald. Even the bartender had stepped out for a break, it seemed. She slid into the seat next to him and watched him continue to work, oblivious to her presence. With a playful impulse, she tapped her finger against his hand to get his attention.

With a gasp, and jerked away as if he had been stung. She couldn't help but laugh at his response and saw his pale cheeks take on some color. He blinked at her a moment before looking at the bar and stammering, "L-l-lazlo stepped out for a minute. If you w-want a drink I can get it for you."

She shook her head, feeling her loose curls bounce from the movement. "No, I just wanted to talk to you," she said with a smile. "But if you're too busy with your…"

"No," he replied, a little too quickly. "What…what did you want to talk about?"

Her eyebrows furrowed a little. This shy, stammering man was a completely different person from the confident one who had found her in the alley. The confusion in his eyes was hard to miss, as if he couldn't understand why she would just want to sit and chat with him. "Just…talk," she shrugged, putting it as simply as she could.

He seemed to calm down, although to her surprise, his eyes turned cautious, calculating. "I must confess, I was very surprised to see you here when I arrived. I never would have guess that someone like you would have been associated with-"

"Someone like me?" she cut in, curiosity lacing her question. Her lip quirked as the stammering, blushing Oswald came back with a vengeance.

"No…I j-just meant that you look…or rather you d-d-don't look like…What I was trying to say was-"

She held up her hand to stop him, a peal of laughter escaping her lips. "It's fine I understand." She replied. "This place practically drips sex appeal and it makes me look pretty out of place."

Oswald was unsure of how to reply. In the sense that she didn't look like the average dancer that Mooney hired she was correct, but there was a classier sort of appeal that she had. True it was that put-together, innocent aura that set her apart but…

"I've never seen you here, but you seem familiar with the place." He decided to change the subject altogether.

"I used to come here a lot when I was younger. My dad was great but growing up with mobster men doesn't exactly teach a girl how to be a girl. That ended up being Fish Mooney's job."

"That's right," Fish Mooney drawled, coming up to rest her hands on Nicki's shoulders. "Daddy's men might have taught you how to shoot again but it was your mama that taught you how to take a man out with a pair of high heels without smudging you lipstick." She winked at Nicki who gave a small laugh. "I'm sorry to hear that Don Falcone has been delayed. You know you're more than welcome to stay if you like, all the same. You know you're always welcome here." Realizing the present company, she shifted her tone slightly, casting a side-long gaze at Oswald. "And I hope our little Penguin here isn't bothering you."

"No, no! He's actually been great company," Nicki said brightly, giving his arm a squeeze. "I'm probably bothering him more than anything."

Fish looked skeptical but smiled all the same before sauntering off to meet a group of Russians that had just made a loud entrance. Nicki turned back to Oswald, but he seemed too interested in his shoes to notice. "You reallllly don't like that name do you?" Nicki remarked, trying to catch his eyes. "You know as far as names go, that isn't the worst-"

"And I shouldn't let it bother me, right?" He cut in bitterly, catching her off guard. "Sticks and stones right?"

His intense eyes dared her agree, but she did nothing of the kind. "Hah!" She exclaimed. "No, I would never say that."His eyes softened a bit. He was surprised to see, not sympathy or her usual smile, but a hardened expression on her face. "Words cut deeper than a knife. Always." She concluded. And for what seemed like the hundredth time that night, Oswald was a loss for what to say. This girl, she was a surprise a minute. Not knowing how to respond, he let the silence sit between them for a moment, broken only by Nicki tapping her finger against her glass to indicate to the newly returned Lazlo that she needed a refill. Flipping it back, she downed half of the amber liquid (scotch?) before setting it back down on the bar. After another moment, she spoke. "I'm going to make sure you're Don knows what you did for me. How you helped me back in that alley-"

"That's not necessary. I wasn't doing it because-" he tried, but she cut him off herself.

"I know." She looked up from her glass and he was happy to see that the warm, open face he had come to associate with her had returned. "That's just it. You had no idea who I was or where I was going. You just saw a girl in trouble and came to her rescue. No good deed should go unrewarded and it's the least I can do." She reached over and squeezed his hand, before adding, "That, and pay you back for the cab fare."

Oswald felt overcome with gratitude. A good word with the Don, well, he couldn't think of anything better. "Miss Nicki, I can't thank you enough." He did his best to smile and lay it on as thick as he could. He even ventured to rest his own hand on top of hers, surprising even himself at his own boldness. She shot him a lazy smile.

"You know, I see why you hate the name Penguin so much, but I kind of like it." He retracted his hand, but she didn't notice, examining his eyes, waiting for the darkness to return, the blush to set in. It didn't though. Only a look of surprise. "It sets you apart," she continued now that she saw he wasn't going to retreat from her. "You're not like everyone else here."

He eyed her suspiciously, but there was no mockery in demeanor. Something else instead actually. Was it…fondness?

"You're not like everyone else here either." He muttered, staring into her eyes.

She smirked. "Well rats, and I thought my disguise was finally working. I guess it is true what they say, you can put a street rat in a dress but she's still a street rat." He blinked and she laughed, a little too loudly. The alcohol was starting to seep into her brain and her lips were getting looser by the minute. "Have you ever heard of the Mouse Thief?"

Oswald's brow furrowed and he gave a slight chuckle at her sudden shift in conversation. "Of course, he was the most infamous thief in Gotham for three years. He pulled off some of the biggest hieghsts the city has seen and was never caught,"

"Never caught by the POLICE." She corrected, shooting him a wink. "The "mouse thief" got a little in over his heads trying to rip off a shipment from Fish Mooney to Don Maroni and got busted by the crime families. Turns out it wasn't a man at all…just two 8 year olds." She smiled into her glass. "But I guess Mouse Thief sounds a lot better than Nicki and Vic."

Oswald's mouth dropped. "Wait…are you trying to tell me YOU are the mouse thief?" His gave a dark chuckle. This was obviously a joke, and he didn't appreciate being made a fool of. "That's absurd."

She shrugged but continued to grin like a Cheshire cat. "Don't believe then."

"Your serious?"

"Dead serious. We got busted and nobody wanted to throw a couple of kids in the river so they just took us in and put us to good use instead."

Oswald shook his head in disbelief. "That's…unbelievable."

"Yeah," she laughed. "Two street kids adopted by the Mafia. You're classic rags to riches story."

"Forgive me," Oswald said, still shaking his head at her tale. "But who exactly adopted you? I still have no idea who you are other than your first name."

"You're cute," she giggled, casting her eyes back to the now almost empty glass. "I believe…I have had too much of this and I have talked far too much." She cast her doe-eyes back on him and propped her head up on her hand. "And I believe I'll keep that secret for another time." She giggled and tapped him on the end of the nose with her finger. Oswald might have been annoyed by this, but when she leaned up and lightly pressed a kiss against his cheek before sauntering away from the bar, he couldn't help but smile. His heart fluttered as he watched her lazily make her way back to Butch, captivated by how innocent and playful she was. It was a breath of fresh air from what the club usually offered and found his hand rising to touch the spot on his cheek where she had kissed him for the second time that day. She had called him cute. She had touched his hand, sat with him, and…But even as he stared after her, he couldn't help but be baffled by the idea of her as she had painted herself just now. As a master criminal. The child robber that terrorized Gotham. As he watched Butch escort her outside he chuckled. There was definilty much more to this girl than met the eye.


	6. Chapter 6

**I own nothing but Nicki. And Neeko, kind of, maybe. He's my own special little Russian that I named myself.**

CHAPTER SIX

"I would challenge you to a battle of wits, but I can see you are unarmed."

Oswald had been watching the door since nine. He knew she would be coming. Her meeting with Don Falcone had been rescheduled to tonight so it was only a matter of time before she showed up. Even now as he was standing in the rain, holding Fish's umbrella, he was constantly glancing back to the front entrance. Fish, on the other hand, was constantly casting annoyed glances at him as he let the umbrella trail away from her in his distracted state of being. "Boy!" she hissed, startling him. He immediately readjusted himself, realizing that for the third time, he had allowed her to get sprinkled on. "S-Sorry Ms. Mooney," he stammered under his breath, casting his eyes downward.

"I think your umbrella boy is expecting someone," Nikolai remarked in his heavy Russian accent. The five suited men accompanying him laughed at his joke. Fish seemed less than amused. "Yes…" she agreed dryly, shooting him a sharp look. "It would appear so." Oswald gulped and ducked his head. Fish had already warned him once about the girl and the last thing he wanted was to be on her bad side. Especially since he was sure that Butch had already told her about their little talk this morning.

 _"Yo Penguin," Butch called, causing Oswald to cringe. "Go dig out some of the nicer looking dresses from wardrobe and hang em on a rack for Nick! She's coming back tonight and we don't want a repeat of yesterday."_

 _"Yes, right away," Oswald said quickly, putting down his pen and rushing past the bigger man. He made a small choking sound as Butch snatched him by the back collar of his shirt. "And hey don't be so chatty this time. You held the poor thing captive last night."_

 _Oswald's brow furrowed at his insinuation, partially out of embarrassment and partly because, well, it simply wasn't true. "The lady actually came to talk to me," he informed Butch curtly._

 _"Oh yeah? And just what did she have to talk to you about?"_

 _"Stories."_

 _"Stories?" Oswald nodded, defiantly. "What kind of stories."_

 _Oswald wasn't sure if he should respond. Was what she had told him confidential? Or, a little voice in the back of his mind added, even true._

 _"She…she said that…well she told me she was the…mouse thief." Even as the words left his mouth he felt stupid, and Butch's guffaw only made his ears go red._

 _"She told you that, huh?" Butch laughed._

 _"It wasn't true was it?" Oswald's heart was sinking lower by the minute._

 _"Nah it's true. HAH!" Butch shook his head. "I just didn't think she was supposed to talk about it too much. But I guess it's not like she exactly left the past in the past." Butch leaned in like he was telling Oswald a joke that only he should here. "That's why she hasn't paid you back personally for the cab fare. The girl feeds every allowance check Daddy gives her right into the feral youth of Gotham. Her ol' man can't stand it. Fish always called her the Queen of the Lost and Found because she's like the Peter Pan of all the lost boys and girls in this city."_

 _Oswald was incredulous. She had been telling the truth, and yet again, he was moved to surprise by her. As he made his way to the dressing room his mind was filled with images of Nicki dressed as a sequenced Robin Hood, throwing bags of money to the grabbing hands of children. With a small chuckle he shook his head, rifling through dresses. A pale blue one stood out among the flashing gold and sequence and he took the material in his hand. Soft and silky. Taking it from the rack he smiled. Perhaps just one option would be plenty for her._

Eventually the rain picked up and the Russians and Fish decided to move in doors. By this time, Oswald's hair was soaked and plastered to his forehead, dripping down his long pointed nose. With Fish taking precedence, the umbrella did him no good. He was used to this by now, however, and simply waited for Fish to seat herself before excusing himself to go towel off. He found a dry dish towel in the kitchen and, looking at his reflection in the shiny surface of a pan, attempted to make himself look presentable. With a sigh he eventually gave up on his hair as familiar cowlicks stuck out of their own accord. He resigned himself to accepting this as the best he could do before rejoining the crowd in the club, which was now teeming with life. Glancing at the clock he could see that it was barely ten, but it was a Friday night he supposed. He moved to the table where Fish sat, and stood posed and ready to take up her drink when it needed refreshed. Nikolai's men were already tossing back glasses of amber liquid and becoming quite raucous. Oswald almost expected Fish to say something to them, but she seemed preoccupied with Nikolai who was about as close to her as he could be without pulling her into his lap. After a few minutes of whispers and low giggles Fish and the Russian left the table, off to one of the back rooms of the club, he could only assume. With her gone, he was able to go help Lazlo with the serving, and in truth he welcomed the task. In his idleness he was consumed by anticipation for when Nicki would come.

As he carried a tray of drinks to the shouting Russians, he heard the door open for the millionth time that night, but this time he wasn't disappointed. A small figure walked in the door, dressed in tight black pants and zipped up leather jacket to match. She was just unpinning her hair and shaking out her curls as she walked in, a motorcycle helmet held beneath her arm. Her doe-eyes met his from across the room and she shot him a smile and a wave before making her way to a side door that led to the backstage area. A low wolf-whistle behind him cued him into the fact that he wasn't the only one that had noticed her entrance. Turning his attention back to the table, he was disgusted to see that Nikolai's men were elbowing each other and making comments in Russian that he could only be thankful he didn't understand. He couldn't exactly blame them, she had looked ravishing in all that black leather, but for some reason it made his blood boil to think of those men ogling her. _Not that you were much better,_ a little voice reminded him as he passed out their drinks.

"Oswald?"

He straightened up at the sound of his name and turned to see her standing right behind him. _Wow she changed fast_ , he thought as he took her in. If she had looked good before she was gorgeous now. The motorcycle outfit had been exchanged for the floor length, pale blue dress with a slit up the side, and sweetheart neckline. He had been right in thinking it was a good choice. It was much more soft and feminine and made her look so out of place under the dim red atmosphere of the room. "Hi," she said simply, flashing him a smile.

"H-Hello miss Nicki," he stammered, returning her grin with a lopsided one of his own.

"Yes," came a slippery voice from behind him. "Helloooooo miss." One of the Russians, Neeko, quirked an eyebrow at her and shot her a toothy grin. Nicki's smile transformed into more of a smirk as she met his gaze. "Nicholetta," she offered, suddenly much more formal. "And you are?"

"The man who's going to be treating you to breakfast in the morning," he slurred out with a smirk. Oswald's eyes narrowed at the man while his friends howled at his smooth-talking antics. "Neeko," he introduced himself. Nicki pursed her lips and crossed her arms, cocking her hip to the side. "Neeko," she tried the name out, before giving a curt, "Pleasure."

"Oh, it will be." Neeko gave her a wink, sending his men into another peal of laughter. Oswald wanted to punch him in his smug face. His comments alone were enough to make his blood boil, and the way he was looking at her, was even worse. There was something predatory in his gaze that set the umbrella boy on edge. Nicki had lost her smile and was now glaring at the man. She recovered quickly and reclaimed the formal politeness she had held before.

"It was nice to meet you," she clipped with a forced smile. "But if you'll excuse me I have to be…anywhere else."

"Now now don't be like this," Neeko drawled in his heavy accent. "I'm joking with you. Come sit with us. Drinks on me." As a show of good faith, he lifted his drink to her, as if offering it to her. She cocked an eyebrow at his seemingly sincere offer. Then with another sleazy wink he added, "I'll even let you sit on my lap. I've got something better than that motorcycle for you to ride."

The men erupted into laughter and Oswald couldn't keep quiet any longer.

"Sir I-" he spat but Neeko cut him off with a menacing look.

"Or you'll what little Penguin man?" he popped his knuckles and smirked, and Oswald felt his whole body get hot. But before he could say another word Nicki held up a hand to slience him. To Oswald's horror she actually offered Neeko a small smile, batting her eyelashes as she leaned across the table towards him, arching her back as she propped herself up on her elbows. Even Neeko seemed a little surprised by this seductive turn. "That sounds nice," she purred, letting her fingers graze over his as he slipped his drink from his hand and leaned in until she was only inches from his face. "But unfortunately, you need to go clean yourself up."

Neeko's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, but before he had time to make a sound she had thrown his drink into his face. He let out a growl and wiped angrily at his face as the other men howled in laughter. Straightening up, Nicki placed her hands on her hips and smirked at the furious Russian. "Drinks on you right?" she purred, meeting his glare with wink. "Now if you boys will kindly excuse me, I believe I'll spend some time with a real man."

She turned to face the incredulous Oswald, her eyes sparkling with mischief. "If you don't mind a dance that is," she said, cocking her head to the side and looking up at him through her lashes. She reached up to smooth down his cowlick and he could smell her vanilla perfume. It took all of his will power to keep from closing his eyes and sighing at her touch. "I would be honored, miss," he said offering her his hand.

They made their way to slightly crowed open space where people sometimes danced and Oswald could feel the eyes of the Russians burning into his back. A twinge of pride warmed his belly at the thought of their jealous gaze. He held up his arms, resigning himself to avoid dancing too closely, but she pressed right up against him, draping one arm over his shoulder and taking his hand with her other. He felt his stomach constrict as they began to dance and felt his heart skip a beat as she suddenly leaned up, her cheek practically touch his. "You're a really good dancer," she said over the noise, her breath tickling his ear and making him gulp.

"My mother taught me," he responded dumbly.

"Good woman," her voice came, and this time he let his eyes drift closed at the tickle of her breath. It was a short lived moment as she leaned back though and smiled up at him.

"Thanks for trying to take up for me with those guys."

"You handled them well enough yourself."

"I still appreciate the thought." After a moment she added, "Falcone has a lot of good men working for him, but those boys don't fit the bill."

Oswald gave a small laugh. "You're meeting with Falcone is tonight? It sounds important." Maybe he was pressing too far, but if there was one thing Oswald liked, it was information, and the more information he could get on this girl…

"Yeah," she responded, suddenly looking a little downcast, and almost making him regret asking. Almost, anyways. "I'm afraid he won't be too happy with me."

"No?"

"I really appreciate all that…I just…a life of crime was never what I had in mind for myself."

"What did you want to be?" He had stopped dancing, now fully engrossed by the sad looking thing in his arms.

"You'll laugh," she refused to meet his eyes.

"I won't." He may have said it too anxiously, but he had to know now. His unanswered questions were gnawing inside of him. She had to grant him at least this one.

She hesitated. "A cop."

"Really," a perplexed smile overtook his face.

"Yeah I-" her voice trailed off as she noticed something over his shoulder. Her eyes suddenly narrowed and Oswald couldn't help but loosen his grip at the hostile expression that wracked her face. "I'll be right back," she hissed, coldly, now her full attention on the bar. As she dropped her arms and began striding towards it, Oswald turned to watch. She was making a bee-line for a laughing boy perched on a bar stool. The kid was probably about eighteen, broad built but with a still pudgy and youthful face. He looked out of place to say the least. He had a Mohawk and heavily lined eyes that easily made him look like a punk, as if his dark slightly dirty clothes weren't doing that well enough for him.

Oswald slunk closer, trying to hear what was going on. Nicki had reached the boy and was now talking to him in what would have been a friendly manner had it not been for the malicious look in her eyes. She pointed to the door and said something with a toss of her head and the boy responded by leaning back in defiance. Just like that, all pretenses were gone and Nicki had a hold of him by his sleeve and was dragging him out the door, and almost comical sight with the way the young man towered over her. Oswald quickly crept behind them, following them to the alley beside the club, just in time to see the small girl slam the now wide-eyed kid against the brick wall.

 **Will Neeko take the insult lying down? Who is this kid getting man-handled by our little Nicki? Will Oswald ever find out how her father is? Stay tuned to find out dear readers and thanks for following me along this far!**


	7. Chapter 7

**I own nothing but Nicki. Ten points if anyone remembers who Clyde was on the show.**

CHAPTER SEVEN

"Though she be but little, she is fierce."

"Clyde?" Nicki exclaimed with a friendly demeanor, acting as if it were some happy accident that she was seeing him here. The boy turned to look at her and his eyes immediately grew as wide as saucers.

"Nick!" He said, mimicking her greeting. A nervous laugh escaped him as he struggled to keep his cool. "Fancy seeing you here-"

"You too," she replied coldly, her eyes hard and hostile, but the friendly smile still playing across her lips. "And just what brings you here, _Clyde."_ She spat his name like it was an insult.

"I was just-"

"Let's step outside," she cut in, her grin getting tighter by the second. "I think we need to have a talk and you know how much I hate to make a scene."

Clyde dropped all pretenses, seeming to realize just how angry she was. She saw the look of daring pass across his eyes and she willed him with her mind. _Don't do this._ But she saw that the cornered boy had made up his mind. With a look of absolute defiance he leaned back against the bar and gave her a stone-faced look. "I'll stay right here thanks." He retorted.

The smile dropped from her face and nothing but anger remained. She saw regret flash across his face as she took hold of his worn jacket and began dragging him towards the door. Once they reached the alley beside the club she slammed him into the brick wall. Clyde was almost a head taller than her so she had to glare up at him, but her height didn't seem to be relevant to either parties involved. Clyde threw his hands up in surrender and began babbling an apology, fear shining in his eyes now that the two were alone. "Ok look I'm sorry," he spoke low and quick. "I just thought, you know, what's the harm in one night?"

"Give me the money." She demanded coldly. Not acknowledging his apology.

"C'mon, I-" He stopped short as she flicked a butterfly knife from a hidden strap on her thigh and pointed it at his chest.

"I didn't spend hardly any of it," he grumbled, taking out his wallet. "Look. Here, take it back ok?"

She didn't lower the knife but snatched the folded money from him. She barely cast it a glance before waving it in his face. "This is it? How much did you spend here?" Before he could reply she had him by the collar of his shirt, pulling him down to eye-level. "This money is for FOOD. Not for you to buy booze with. All of the starving kids at the Flea are more important than you're night life."

His eyes suddenly narrowed and he shoved her hands off of him, only to have her hook her leg into the back of his knee, bringing him down hard on the pavement. The knife was now level with his cheek and pressing cold against his skin. "Look, look! Me and the boys, we do this every time and there's always plenty left for food and blankets. The works!"

"You've done this before?" She growled.

"We've been doing this and it hasn't been an issue. You just don't know because-"

"You purposefully go outside my territory to have your fun." She completed. "The _issue_ darling, is that I don't pay for you to go drink yourselves away. I pay for you to have your needs met so you can maybe make something of yourselves."

The fear and pleading were gone. Clyde was staring daggers at the face hovering over him. "You're just like the rest of these rich Gothamites, you know that? We need to _make something_ of ourselves? You think just because you got adopted into money and got it to throw at us now your better than us?" He rose to his feet as Nicki dropped her arms, her face riddled with shock. "You're trash just like the rest of us and all these fancy gifts from your new Daddy don't change that."

For a moment she just stood there staring at him, floored. And then, she struck. Before Clyde knew what was happening, her fist had struck the side of his face, sending him stumbling back. He glanced up just in time to see the next blow before it connected with his cheek. The knife was against his throat once more and her face was only an inch away from his. "Do you know," she hissed, "what I have gone through for you? For all of you? So you didn't have to spend all your time stealing and making seedy connections? So you don't have to live as criminals?" She shoved him backwards against the wall. "Get out of my sight." She spat. Panting, Clyde rushed past her and out of the alley, stumbling away from the club.

Oswald, who had been hiding at the edge of the alley had to duck behind a dumpster to keep from being run over. The dark-haired man was in sheer shock. The girl he had just witnessed was almost unrecognizable as the soft thing that had just been dancing with him. The images of her holding the tall boy at knifepoint and beating him were burned into his mind's eye and he could barely remember what the smiling, sweet Nicki he had come to know looked like. He could feel his blood running hot at this new image of her. To see her so dangerous, so angry…it was oddly thrilling. He pictured her looking at him that way. The two of them meeting with rough hands and rough lips, feeling her wildness and trying to harness it himself.

He shook his head, trying to clear it. Mooney's warning flashed in his head. _You don't want to get mixed up with our little Nicki._ Is this why? Was it because she was some sort of dangerous, street kid hustling, vixen? A fair warning if he was right, but oh, maybe…maybe that was exactly the kind of daring little mouse he wanted to get mixed up with. So small and delicate, easily manipulated, but with such a fearsome bite. His frail little baby bird definitely had a set of talons on her, he thought with throaty chuckle. As he peered at her in the darkness, however, he could see the version of her that was much more familiar starting to return as she struggled to compose herself.

Nicki pinched the bridge of her nose and leaned against the brick wall. She could feel the sobs welling up inside of her but she fought to keep her breathing steady. Finally collecting herself, she began to make her way back towards the club.

As she reached the end of the alley, however, she found her way blocked. Five men in suits stood in front of her, Neeko at the front, leering. "We meet again," he drawled, flashing her, a wolf-ish grin. Her eyes narrowed as he took a step towards her but she didn't back down. "How unfortunate," she muttered.

 **Is that what Fish meant? How will Nicki handle her second encounter with Neeko? What was Nicki's beef with Clyde anyways? Stick with me dear reader and all will be revealed. Thanks for reading!**


	8. Chapter 8

**I own nothing but Nicki.**

CHAPTER EIGHT

"Screw your courage to the sticking place."

"So rude," he returned, taking another step, now standing toe to toe with her. "I think my boys and I should teach you how a proper woman acts." He reached up to stroke her cheek and she pulled away.

"I'll pass." She retorted. He snatched her jaw violently, pulling her face close to his.

"It wasn't a question." She reached for her knife and drew it up quickly, managing to cut his hand with it. He cried out and in pain, but before she could make another move, two of the others reacted, catching her by the arms and hauling her back into the alley. They slammed her into the wall, causing her to drop the knife on impact. Neeko, still nursing his hand, glared at her as he approached. Picking up the fallen knife, he traced her collar bone with the cold metal. Clicking his tongue he raised it to her throat. "So much fire in this one," he mused, his breath hot and smelling of alcohol. "We'll have to fix that."

"That's enough," a voice called from the end of the alley. Oswald had emerged from hiding and now stood, scared but determined. "Let her go." He ordered, hoping he sounded more intimidating that he felt. He was disappointed to see that it didn't appear to be the case. Neeko and the others broke into a laugh and with a toss of his head, Neeko signaled for the three that weren't pressing Nicki to the wall to take care of the intruder.

"Well it seems that your "real man" has come to your rescue," Neeko chuckled, squeezing her face and inching closer. She could feel his hot breath on her lips and squeezed her eyes shut. He pulled away quickly as sickening thunk and horrified yelp rang out. All eyes turned to Oswald who was standing over one of the hulking men, a brick in his hand. All was still for just a moment, and the other two pounced, only allowing Oswald one more hit in before they set upon him with punches and kicks.

Taking advantage of the distraction, Nicki slammed her knee into Neeko's groin causing him to double over in pain and brought the spiky heel of her shoe back down on the foot of the man beside her. The thug let out a howl and she broke her arm away, clawing at the face of the last man holding her. She rushed to Oswald's aid, and gripped the shoulders of one man, trying desperately to pull him away as he landed a hard kick into the umbrella boy's stomach. She finally forced him to stumble back and trip over the unconscious goon Oswald had taken out with the brick but the other was quick to take her by the shoulders and push her to the ground.

Through bleary eyes, Oswald saw a server saunter into the alley. With relief he realized it was Lazlo. The poor server was just taking out his cigarette, presumably just leaving for his break when he saw the scene before him and froze. "Get help!" Oswald yelled before he felt himself being lifted by the collar and felt a fist connect with his eye. The hand dropped him to the ground and panting he saw Neeko, now recovered, approaching Nicki who had once again been hoisted up by two of Nikolai's men and was now propped in her former spot against the wall. As soon as he was close enough, Nicki spat in his face. With a snarl, he took her face in his palm and slammed her head back into the wall. She went limp from the blow and her head nodded as if she were barely retaining consciousness.

"STOP IT" a wild voice screeched. Turning his head, Oswald saw Fish Mooney herself marching down the alley, Nikolai hot on her heels. Her footsteps echoed as she came at them, a picture of sheer rage. "Get your damn hands off of her! Do you have any idea who that is?" Neeko had abandoned his prey and was now completely attentive to the enraged woman. With all the force she could muster, she slapped him in the face, actually taking him down to his knees. "That's Don Maroni's daughter," she hissed, glaring into his face.

Oswald, who had been struggling to lift himself, almost fell over. _Don Maroni's daughter?_ All he could do was gape. _No…_ he thought, staring wide-eyed at the scene in front of him. Neeko, however, did not share his amazement. In fact, the arrogant man seemed thoroughly unimpressed. With a dark chuckle he met Fish's dagger-like gaze, and smirked. "So? Not our family."

The unmistakable click of a gun echoed through the alley, and Neeko froze. "No…" a calm, blank voice sounded from behind him. "But she is mine."

Seeming to materialize out of the shadows came a bald man, wearing a nice suit and a very serious expression. A feeling of tension filled the air, and even though Oswald had never seen the man in person, who knew exactly whose presence he was in. Victor Zsaz.

 **Don Maroni? Victor Zsaz? Whaaaaaat?**

 **Thank you for reading! More updates coming soon! Also I appreciate the encouragement from Guest reader! It means a lot that people are actually interested in this story! I'm about to get really busy with Student Teaching and some theatre shows I'm a part of but I send you all much love and I'll keep the updates coming as quick as I can!**


	9. Chapter 9

**I own nothing but Nicki...and unconscious Neeko I guess.**

CHAPTER NINE

"Come not between a dragon and his wrath."

Oswald practically fell into the booth, his body aching and head throbbing. Not far behind him was Butch, the semi-consious Nicki in his arms. Gently leaning her into the booth beside Oswald Butch gave him the order to watch her before rushing to meet the others who were just now coming in. Oswald couldn't help but notice that all parties involved were loud and livid except for Victor who was the picture of calm and Neeko who had been knocked unconscious by the butt of Victor's gun and had now been tossed unceremoniously on the floor. The thug Oswald had taken out with a gun was busy groaning in the corner, now conscious but nursing a bleeding head wound. Good, Oswald thought to himself, feeling a surge of satisfaction as he remembered the way it had felt when the brick made contact.

The rest were in a frenzy. Nikolai was in a rage at the injuries of his men, Fish was in a rage at the idiocy of Nikolai's men and the blood on her carpet, and Victor regarded them all cooly as he awaited the arrival of Don Falcone. Apparently, the permission of the Don was the only thing that was keeping Neeko alive.

Oswald cursed himself for his own idiocy as he regarded the chilling man. Vic. Victor Zsaz. Now as he thought back, it all made sense. How had he not seen it? Victor Zsaz's sister. Don Maroni's daughter. It was all so overwhelming and baffling. No wonder Fish had been so adamant about his not getting mixed up with this girl.

And speaking of the girl. He tore his attention from the chaos at the door and began examining her. She looked, terrible. Cuts and bruises were visible on her exposed shoulders and collar bone and her face was streaked with dirt and mascara. Her eyes fluttered as she slipped in and out of consciousness and it occurred to him that someone with a head injury shouldn't be sleeping. As gently as he could, he ran his thumb across her cheekbone, and whispered to her. "Hey," he began, unsure of what to say. "You…you need to stay awake, ok?" Her heavy-lidded eyes regarded him and she attempted to sit up but hissed in pain. He reacted immediately, helping her to lower herself back against the booth, whispering anything he could think of that might sound comforting.

"It's ok, just…just lay back ok? Take it easy." He rambled as he smoothed her hair out of her face. His hands froze as she locked eyes with him. They were unfocused, and as watery and troubled as a stormy sea. Her hand rose to touch his bruised face, fingers lightly dancing on his cheek where he had been punched, or one of the places anyways. He winced and lips pressed together in a tight frown. With new found determination, she pulled herself up and slid her arms around his waist, burying her face in his chest. He didn't react at first, his hands hanging uselessly in the air above her, but as her body began to shake with sobs he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer.

"I'm sorry," she choked out, her voice muffled in his suit jacket. "I'm so sorry."

He pulled away from her, trying to see her face as he looked at her with an incredulous expression. "Sorry? For what?"

"They hurt you. And all you were doing was trying to help." Her eyes suddenly flashed angrily. "That's why I hate this business. These people. You try to do something good and it comes right back around and blacks your eye. It's so-agh!" she winced and grabbed her head, her outburst not helping the injury. Oswald didn't respond, only pulled her back against his chest and held her, pressing his long nose into her hair. He wasn't too familiar with comforting people but this usually worked with his mother. This girl didn't seem to take well to his coddling however, and struggled to raise herself back up. There was a pained look in her expression that had nothing to do with her injuries. She stoked his bruised eye. "You look terrible," she muttered.

"Thanks," he laughed with a Cheshire cat grin.

She was unamused. "It's my fault."

"No," he sighed dramatically. "It's mine. Apparently I have a penchant for spending too much time with girls that hang out in alleyways."

She finally cracked a smile and with a small chuckle rested herself against his chest once more. It was strange to be able to influence the girl in the way he seemed to do. Oswald was no stranger to manipulation, but with her it was almost effortless. He could make her smile or get her to divulge secrets without even trying. Was this what true friendship was like? Or was this girl just weak? Even as that thought crossed his mind though, images of her, wild and armed flashed through his mind and he dispelled the idea, resigning to focus his attention on just keeping her comforted as promised.

He would have enjoyed the scent of her, the warmth of her body against his, but he was hyper aware of his current situation. _Don Maroni's daughter is crying over me. I'm holding Don Maroni's daughter._ She was beautiful. She was a person of influence. And she was practically lying on top of him. This whole scenario was both thrilling and terrifying for Oswald as he considered the heroic and comforting perspective this girl seemed to hold of him, and the inappropriateness the others would probably find in their current position.

He could see that he was right on the mark when pair of wary eyes caught his attention. Victor Zsaz seemed to materialize out of thin air and was now looming over the pair. Oswald couldn't help but shrink back, wishing he could disappear into the booth's cushioned seat. He released his grip on the girl, as if she were suddenly scalding to the touch.

"C'mon Nicki," Victor said in that terrifyingly emotionless tone, never once taking his eyes off of Oswald. Nicki stood up from the booth, swaying slightly. Victor caught her by the shoulders and held her at arm's length. After a moment of inspection he cracked a smile that was possibly more terrifying to Oswald than the former stony expression. "I've seen you look worse," he resolved tweaking her chin with his finger.

"Yeah you should see the other guy," she smirked back. Chuckling Zsaz wrapped his arm around her shoulders, giving her a brief hug.

"You should see him after I get Don Falcone's go-ahead," Victor joked back, his tone suddenly taking a malicious turn.

"He should pay for this," Oswald whispered darkly under his breath. He felt eyes on him, and realized he had spoken louder than he intended. Victor gave him a nod, fully returning to terrifying blank look.

"He will." Victor held Oswald's gaze for only a moment before the smaller man had to look away. Out of the corner of his eye he saw that Nicki was also staring at him, something strange in her eyes. It almost looked like, fear.

 **HEY GUYS! Sorry it's taken me for ever to update. I've been working on my lesson plans for student teaching (research papers and Beowulf) and I was getting ready for a movie shoot! All exciting things but I love you all so forgive me and stick with me if you're still interested! Also I've been listening to some of my favorite musicals (The New Albion Operas, Bullets Over Broadway, and a million others) and all I can do is picture these character in them. Does anyone else ever have that problem? Much love and thanks3**


	10. Chapter 10

**I own nothing but Nicki**

CHAPTER TEN

"Frailty thy name is woman."

Or

"Love all, trust a few, and do wrong to none."

Don Falcone himself arrived shortly after, taking it upon himself to personally apologize to Nicki for the "unfortunate occurrence". She was the picture of forgiveness and Oswald watched in awe of her. He was dumbfounded when Victor asked his boss if he could "go to work" (those three words sending a shiver up and down Oswald's spine) and Nicki quickly negated his request. All were shocked by this, even Nikolai's jaw dropped, and Victor regarded her with a cool glare before turning back to Falcone. "Sir, this was a direct assault and a complete disrespect towards a rival family-"

"It's my decision to make," Nicki cut in, meeting his chilling gaze with an intense one of her own.

"I'm not sure you're in any condition to make it."

"I'm fine."

"Your head is-"

"Fine."

"Children." Don Falcone called them down sternly, but there was a slight twinkle of amusement in his eye.

"It _is_ my decision, right?" NIcki asked, unrelenting.

"In a way," Falcone reasoned. "But it would be a direct disservice towards the Maroni family if we let this act go unpunished."

"Sir the girl says-" Nikolai tired but Falcone held up a hand to silence him.

"Victor will punish this man as he deems necessary. But at your request, he won't be killed." Don Falcone delivered this compromise to Nicki with a tone of finality and though she still looked less than happy, she nodded her head. Victor's grin stretched across his face as he nodded to his boss as well. The situation now resolved, Falcone began moving everyone along. "We'll keep him here for you. Get your sister home."

Victor gave a quick nod before jerking his head towards the door, indicating for Nicki to follow him. Eyeing him with a fierce glare, she began following him, head held high and barely acknowledging that she was injured. Just before she exited, she stopped, hand on the door. "Don Falcone," she called back softly, turning to face him. The older man granted her his attention. "You should know that Mr. Cobblepot has come to my aid, not one, but twice." She let a small smile play across her lips as she turned her now softened doe-eyes to the beaten and bruised man in the booth. "Fish Mooney has a really great man there."

Oswald felt his face get warm as she left with a wink. Falcone turned his attention back to the small man and gave an impressed grunt, cocking an eyebrow. "Well," he reasoned. "At least someone in this place knows how to do their job."

"Don Falcone, that's hardly fair."Fish Mooney was all charm now as she approached her boss, but he froze her in her place with a hard look.

"I'm afraid you may have forgotten the reason we have invited Nicholleta Maroni into our territory," he challenged. "Perhaps you need a reminder?"

Fish was now stiff and expressionless, her face careful not to give anything away. Oswald couldn't help but wonder what exactly she was hiding. Disdain? Fear? "I remember perfectly," she said answered slowly. "It occurs to me though that maybe not everyone is aware of how our precious little twins came into mafia possession." Her blank expression faltered as she shot a venomous look towards the onlooking Russians.

"Educate them." Facone replied, and with that he left without another word. Oswald was in complete adoration of the man as he watched him go. To be Don Facone…to make the strong and fierce crumble with a look. To tie the tongues of the smooth talkers with just one word. There was such power radiating off that man, and he barely had to do anything to make the aura known. Oswald ached to have that kind of influence. To-

"Well," Fish cut into his reveries, clapping her hands together and turning to address the Russians and her own boys. "I've suddenly remembered that you all don't actually know about the little…mouse infestation…we had about thirteen years ago. So I guess it's story time." She shot them all a dangerous smirk before giving Butch a pointed look.

Butch gave a semi-amused huff. "I guess it's time to break out the old home videos."

 **Thank you so much for the review! I really can't tell you how much I appreciate the encouragement and I'm glad you enjoy reading this. It warmed my heart to hear that you like the way I've been writing Oswald. He's my favorite character hands down and because he's just such a complex human being. Also…I'M SO EXCITED THAT YOU'RE A NEW ALBION FAN! Just like you, I was pretty sure my sister and I were the only ones who had ever even heard of it! I think it's just a masterpiece and I never get tired of listening to any of the albums!**


	11. Chapter 11

**I own nothing but Nicki.**

CHAPTER ELEVEN

"Have more than you show. Speak less than you know."

Oswald soon discovered that the "home videos" were security tapes. Butch had fetched them from Fish's office and was now setting them up on a TV in the backroom. It wasn't a small room, but it wasn't quite big enough to house the number of people it was currently containing. Fish had insisted that everyone gather around for the precious family memories and Oswald couldn't help but wonder if forcing them all into such close confinement was a form of punishment she was dealing them in itself. Thankfully, he was against the back wall with Fish, poised with a bottle of wine with which he was to keep her drink full. He was sure that the evening had influenced her decision on drinking as much as she currently was and normally he loved her when she was upset in this manner. Angry Fish was dangerous, but stressed Fish was a gift if you played your cards right, and Oswald with his talented foot massages and eagerness to please was usually at the forefront of gaining her approval and gratitude when she was in a mood like this, allowing him the pleasure of praise, small privileges, and a little physical affection that he admittedly loved receiving. But even the thought of her sensual lips on his cheek or soft hands pressed gratefully against his arms or chest were enough to keep his focus as he mulled over her comment from earlier. Mouse infestation…What could she mean…and what did that have to do with Nicholetta?

"And…we…are…." Butch drew out as he set up the old VCR. "Rolling." He hit the play button with a flourish and moved to wedge himself back into the back corner near Fish so that everyone had a clear view of the television. The black and white security footage opened on large and open room, occupied by two groups of men, both poised as if ready to crash together any minute. Leading both of these sides were a viciously angry Fish and an equally furious man that Oswald did not recognize.

He was very tall and, in spite of his put together suit, had a scruffy look about him. He was standing with his arms crossed across his chest, glaring down at Fish who was inches from his face, albeit a good foot below him. "Look doll, it ain't my fault your bunch of mooks lost the supplies," he sneered down at her, very condescending and very Italian. "But that DON'T MEAN you get to skimp on giving us the money."

"Call me Doll again and see what happens," she hissed up at him, jabbing a manicured finger in his face. "And I'll be damned if I'm paying for booze that YOU'RE sad excuses for men lost."

Even on this grainy security footage, Oswald could tell that Fish was a force to be reckoned with. Her posture was a rattlesnake ready to strike. The other man, however, was less than impressed. Letting his head loll back slightly so that he was looking down his nose at the woman in front of him, he heaved a heavy sigh and clicked his tongue. "You see that's the thing," he drawled at her. "My guys got your stuff right here to this warehouse, just like they were supposed to. Whether or not your guys kept ahold of it when it got here ain't my problem. Got it…" he leaned down so that their noses were almost touching, "Doll?"

Fish's hand flashed across his face before anyone could process what had happened. The tall man immediately hissed in pain, clutching a hand to his face. Both mobs of men took a step forward but Fish held her hand to stop her side of the potential fight, while the other man gave a lazy wave at his, letting out a chuckle as he looked at his hand, checking for blood. Small dark scratches had appeared on his face, just visible in the footage. "Ok you know what," he said, taking a step back and wagging a finger at her. "I'll cut you a deal. Half the money. As a courtesy." He gave her a smug smirk which she returned, advancing forward a step.

"I'm. Not. Paying." She replied with a sweet smile.

His smile dropped and his demeanor got harder. He didn't look angry though, Oswald mused, more annoyed than anything. "Look you gettin' robbed-"

"YOU got robbed," Fish cut him off. "The supplies never made it inside the building."

"Because your guys-"

"My boys don't lose supplies!"

"Oh but mine do huh?"

"Clearly."

"Fish!" A new voice cut in. There was the sound of a heavy door slamming shut and a new person ran in between Fish and the other man. Oswald couldn't help but notice that he looked like one of Fish's boys, Raoul. Only with shaggier hair and a less worn face.

"Yes Raoul?" Fish answered him with a forced pleasantness. So it was Raoul. How long ago was this? As Oswald squinted at the television, he noticed that Fish too seemed a little different as well. There was something a little more wild about her than the refined and calculating Fish he had come to know.

"The money is gone t-too," he said, barely able to meet her eyes. Her expression turned cold and snatched ahold of his lapels pulling him down to her eyelevel. The already frightened man was now cowering in fear. "I'm s-sorry, he stuttered, holding up his hands. "I don't know how they got into the truck but it's all gone."

The tall man gave a sharp laugh. "Yeah, you're boys don't lose nothin' huh?"

Fish shot him a murderous look, but before she could react Raoul interjected more information. "Butch and some of Maroni's guys are trying to catch the thief now. And Maroni and Falcone are both here." Fish and the taller man both suddenly looked a little uneasy at the new intervention and Raoul, still bent over at an uncomfortable angle, looked as if he might be shaking. Even the surrounding men became shifty.

"Well,"Fish snapped, shoving Raoul back up to a standing position and turning her attention back to the taller man. "I'd love to hear how you plan on telling your Don that you-"

The man let out an exasperated grunt, clearly at the end of his patience. In one long stride he was inches from Fish, towering over her and pointing a finger into face much as she had done to her. "Now look here you stupid broad-"

"Frankie!" Frankie's head snapped to somewhere off screen, and for a moment had the look of a cat that had just gotten caught eating a canary. That quickly slid off, however, replaced by irritated but more indifferent look as he held up his hands and backed away from the woman, who had remained unimpressed by his display anyways.

"Sorry boss," he muttered, quite unapologetically. His eyes and Fish's were still locked as if they could rush each other at any minute and the tension was palpable, even on the screen. The arrival of two more men caught Oswald's attention however. The first one, the one who had spoken, Oswald assumed, was a large man in a very nice suit who was regarding Fish and the tall man with a surprising look of amusement. The other was someone who Oswald immediately recognized. Although he looked less worn from age, and had slightly more hair than when Oswald had last seen him a few hours ago, it was unmistakably Don Falcone.

"Now Frankie, is that any way to treat a lady?" the larger man scolded, as if talking to a child. He turned his attention to Fish, all openness and warmth. "My apologies if my men have been disrespectful towards you, tootse." The irony of his statement made Oswald wince. He almost wondered if the man were purposefully mocking her, but there was a certain pleasantness and warmth in his statement that showed that he was simply oblivious to the fact that he had just insulted her. Nevertheless, Oswald stole an uneasy glance at Ms. Mooney beside of him, who was watching the whole thing with a bored regalness. A queen watching an unamusing play. The younger Fish on the screen was not handling it quite so well.

"MS. MOONEY." The film Fish corrected. Spitting the words at him. It was almost a laughable sight. A kitten baring her teeth at this goliath of a gorilla. The man's eyebrows raised but he only gave her a good natured chuckle before holding out a hand to her. "Salvadore Maroni," he returned in introduction. _As in Don Maroni?_ Oswald mused. Fish turned glanced back at Don Falcone, who had been watching the whole exchange in silence, and gave her a subtle nod. Exhaling heavily through her nose, she reached up to shake his hand. Maroni snatched her hand and quickly planted a sloppy kiss on it before dropping it. He either missed her alarmed look of disgust or didn't care to acknowledge it as he clapped his hands and rubbed them together.

"So Carmine," he turned his attention to Falcone, "it appears we have a little bit of an issue on our hands."

"So it does, Sal, so it does," Falcone agreed, all business.

Fish, who had been wiping her hand off on her dress, now tried for a cool, poised look, crossing her arms across her chest. "They're chasing after the thief now," she said in an icy tone. "Maybe we can flip a coin to see who gets to throw the son of a bitch in the river?"

"I just wanna know who it was," Maroni addressed the group. "I mean, who rips off both our families? Am I right?"

"Yes," Falcone agreed slowly and thoughtfully. Oswald felt himself wondering the same thing as well. Not only because the idea of someone against the two biggest mob families was attention-grabbing, but because there was surely a reason they were watching this tape.

He didn't have to wonder long. Suddenly, a young Butch came tripping on camera, panting like a dog. "We got 'em!" he yelled triumphantly.

"Who is it?" Carmine Falcone asked over the buzz of the surrounding people. Young butch let out a low chuckle.

"You ain't gonna believe this."

From off screen two small children made their appearance, both with their hands tied and two hulking men holding each of their shoulders. Oswald couldn't help but gasp as he immediately recognized them. The boy was bald and raggedy looking, a cut above his cheek and a limp in his walk which he tried desperately to hide as he bit back a wince with every step he took as he was marched in. Next to him, walking in perfect tandem was a girl. She had long, wet hair that hung in clumps around her face and dripped on the concrete. Her whole person appeared to be wet actually, Oswald noticed, and she walked with her head held high like a queen, her small face simply exuding defiance. Oswald had a sneaking suspicion that he knew who these two children were.

Everyone on screen was staring at the two, speechless, as they made their way to the center of the room where the two Dons stood. The silence was broken my Don Maroni who broke out into loud bouts of laughter, doubling over and slapping his knee. "You gotta be kiddin' me!" he shouted through guffaws. "These two? These are the criminal masterminds? What are they, like, 8?"

"Ten." A voice answered, high and cold, and the room returned to silence as everyone eyed the small girl who had spoken with wariness. Her expression was much stonier than any child should be capable of and her eyes were alight with challenge towards the large man who had been laughing at them. Even Maroni seemed to get a little unsettled.

"And just who are you two?" Don Falcone questioned, gently but firmly. The two remained silent. "What are your names?" The children exchanged glances, but then turned back to Falcone, still silent.

"This is ridiculous! What are we babysitters now?" the tall man, Frankie, protested in an exasperated tone. He turned his attention to Fish. "Help us out here. Where's your maternal side?"

Fish shot him a dangerous look before turning to reason with Falcone. "I don't think we're asking the right question here," she said logically. "Who cares who the munchkins are. What we should be concerned with is who they are covering for. Do you really expect me to believe that these two children just stole two trucks of booze and ten suitcases full of money?"

A sharp laugh caught everyone by surprise. The small bald boy had lost his cool look and was now laughing like a madman at them. The little girl shot him a sharp look that cut him off, but he still retained a lazy smirk. Fish and Falcone exchanged a look.

"Ok my boy," Don Falcone said sternly to him. "I need for you to understand what kind of a situation you're in right now. What you have done has caused problems with some very important and very dangerous people. If you don't cooperate and tell us who you're causing this little distraction for, I can't make any promises about your safety.

Maroni looked incredulous. "Wait, what? They're just kids."

"Who said we're a distraction for anyone?" the little boy replied, a mischievous twinkle in his eye.

"You expect me to believe that you two caused all of this trouble? Duped all of my men, and pulled a heist of this scale? You can see how I would be insulted by this, yes?"

The boys face took on an innocent façade, the twinkle still there. "I can't imagine why," he said slyly," they've managed to do what all of the GCPD haven't been able to do. Catch the mouse thief."

Everyone in the room was taken aback. The little girl began hissing at him under her breath, her words coming fast as flying daggers. Don Falcone, however, was not convinced. "You expect me to believe that-"

The little boy cut him off. "Why not? Who else could have snuck in through the vents of Wayne Enterprise? A grown up would be a little tall don't you think?"

"This is absurd!" Fish exclaimed.

"Actually," Butch cut in meekly, "they did give us quite a bit of issue trying to catch them." He motioned to men who had helped him capture to two. They were definitely worse for wear, one even nursing a bullet hole in his foot.

"Well," Don Falcone said, cocking an eyebrow. "How about that."

"What are we gonna do with 'em boss?" one of Falcone's goons asked. "If what they say is true, they cost all of us quite a bit today."

"You don't believe all of this do you?" Fish asked skeptically.

"Actually I do," Falcone replied, sizing the children up. "These two are quite a threat. They'll need to be dealt with-"

"What are you gonna dump their little bodies in the river?" Maroni cut it in, working himself into a fit. "Not on my watch. Kids are kids, period. " He turned his attention to the two who were now eyeing him with calculated looks. As Oswald could only assume was usual, he was oblivious to this and advanced upon them. "Look this one has got a limp like he broke his leg or something. Someone get the boy a damn chair. And this little dollbaby is shaking so hard it's a wonder she doesn't knock herself over." His men, hesitated but then went to fulfill their bosses request. Maroni slipped off his own jacket and, much to the little girls shock, slung it around her shoulders. Unable to move her hands to defend herself, she stood stock still at his quick action and looked comical with her dripping hair, wide eyes, and this enormous white suit jacket draped around her, pooling at her feet.

"That isn't what I was going to suggest," Falcone said, watching the whole scene with amusement. "I think we should go and talk in another room friend." He started to walk off, but stopped. Turning back, he gave the two a quizzical look. "Why on earth do two kids your age need that much money anyways?"

The girl remained a dripping statue. The boy hesitated as well, but then broke. "We take care of street kids."

"Vic," the little girl squeaked in alarm, immediately also taking on a guilty look as she realized she had just revealed his name. Oswald gave a small nod to himself. He had been right. It was a young Victor Zsaz, not much less scarier than his adult counterpart. So the other one must be...

"There's a bunch of us, some our age, mostly younger. We, me and Nick here, try to keep the fed and all but you can't live day to day stealing wallets. We thought this could be a chance to get ahead of the hunger, you know."

Oswald felt a surge go through him. So this was Nicki as well. He knew it. He could see realization dawning on the others in the room as well.

"And where are the others," Falcone asked from the TV.

"It doesn't matter," Little Nicki snapped her face alight with defiance. "You caught us, ok? Why bring anyone else to this?"

"Now little miss-" Falcone started but she would not be calmed.

"You caught the two of us fair and square. But leave everyone else out of it." Falcone pursed his lip to keep from smiling at the tiny little girl's protests. Maroni wasn't so subtle and let out a loud chuckle, not noticing her deathly glare at him.

"What a little firecracker!" Maroni shouted, ruffling the girl's hair with his giant hand and causing her to retreat back from him. "I like this girl! She's got a lot of moxy in her."

"Indeed,"Falcone said, thoughtfully. Then motioning for Maroni to follow him, he added, "A word?"

Maroni nodded, still laughing slightly. There was a click and the screen went blank. Oswald, who had been so caught up in the footage, looked to see Fish pointing her remote at the television.

 **Hey guys! I just updated this chapter! SO SORRY about that weird coding thing...I'm not sure how that even happened haha. Thank you CollegeGirl2018 so much for bringing it to my attention and than you all so much for reading! I'm thinking about maybe adding a chapter about Victor and Nicki's side of this, especially their little ten year old selves pulling of the heist...I should be getting my updates in more frequently now that my unit plan has ended! Love you all!**


	12. Chapter 12

**I own nothing but the Nicki of which they speak.**

CHAPTER TWELVE

"Stay close to anything that makes you glad you are alive"

There was much protest as the room realized their show was over. Oswald felt disappointed as well, but knew better than to join in on the complaints. Many of Nikolai's men began shouting out questions, such as: What happens next? Those were the two from tonight right? Were they really the mouse theif? Fish let them voice their inquiries for a few minutes before finally sighing and holding up a hand for silence.

"Yes that was our Nicki and Victor. And yes they were exactly who they said they were. Those two have been criminal masterminds since the age of 10. If we hadn't caught them, the street children of Gotham would probably be running the city right now. Luckily for us, however, we did manage to not only catch them, but make them family members. Don Falcone and Don Maroni each took one on as a ward and raised them within our families. They were…reluctant to split up at first," Butch scoffed and Fish sent a wink his way, "but we managed to convince them with a little bribery."Oswald looked around the room. Everyone was silent, hanging on her every word. He himself was enraptured as well.

"Don Maroni considers her to be a daughter, blood or no. Although she did spend quite a bit of time with us when she reached a certain age. Maroni and his men did a fine job raising her, but there are some things a girl needs her momma to teach her." Some of the men looked confused at her statement. Oswald, understanding the implication, tried to interest himself in his shoes, his face turning red. Fish noticed this and gave him a sympathetic smile for his embarrassment that didn't quite reach her eyes. She couldn't hide the amusement in them. She continued. "They signed contracts, pledging their allegiance to the families. Those contracts are ending soon now that they are both turning 21. As they were promised that day in the warehouse, they get to make a choice. They can continue to serve their family…or find a new route to go down."

Oswald felt his eyebrows lift. So that's what this was about. He thought about how unhappy Nicki had been, how she had confessed that this wasn't the life she wanted. She wanted out and now she had her chance.

He felt a twinge of sadness at the thought. He had only just met her a short time ago, but already the thought of her being gone upset him. She would surely leave all this behind and not look back. And then he would never see those big brown eyes again, dance with her body pressed flush to his, feel those soft lips against his cheek….

He shook his head, as if to clear it. This was ridiculous. He was becoming way too enamored with the girl, and why? Because she had been nice to him? Because she had shown him a little affection? He scolded himself for his own stupidity. It was silly to get hung up on people so. Especially in this line of business. He would never climb the ladder if he was going to get stuck on silly, doe-eyed pipe dreams. Looking around the room, he saw that he wasn't the only one facing an internal struggle, although his was less of a mental struggle then the others it would seem. Nikolai's brow was furrowed as he struggled to comprehend what he was hearing.

"So we are supposed to play nice with this girl because we want…what?" he said, appearing frustrated at his own lack of understanding. "For Maroni to keep her on payroll? Why don't we want him to lose her if she is such a great asset?"

Oswald felt his irritation grow at the other man's slowness. "We don't. We want her to come to our side…" He spoke before thinking and suddenly realized that he had probably committed a mistake. It wasn't his place to contribute to the discussion, and especially not to speak down to a boss. He quickly tried to recover, making himself the picture of humbleness, ducking his head. "Right?"

Fish smiled and ran her finger along his jaw line before lifting his chin to meet his eyes. "Clever boy," she remarked. He gave a small huff of a laugh as a dopey grin spread across his face. He heard a couple of men scoff at his behavior but he couldn't have cared less. Fish recognized his cleverness and he felt the next proverbial rung of the ladder within his grasp. Someday, he thought to himself.

Fish had already turned her attention back to the crowd. "Ideally, we want her to come join us. Mostly we want to keep her in our circles. If she takes off and wants nothing to do with the mafia, everyone loses. She knows too much and is too valuable. There's no question that Victor Zsaz will be staying with us, but it's become clear that his sister needs more convincing. So far our little Oswald has been the only one that has been helpful with that."

Oswald felt his chest swell at her praise. He couldn't believe what a gift fate had given him with this girl. He thought back to seeing her in that alley and helping her out of the goodness of his heart and was amazed at what had come of it. Perhaps doing a good deed now and then wasn't such a bad plan. And now she owed him as well. He could already feel his brain begin teeming with favors he could ask of her, most of which would help him establish himself, others that were a little more…personal. The later he tried to push from his mind.

"Now that the movie is over…"Fish continued giving all of them a pointed look. "Go home." The effect was immediate and the room quickly emptied, except for Nikolai whom Fish had motioned to stay. Oswald began picking up glasses that had been left behind, stalling as much as he could to eavesdrop on what Fish and the Russian were discussion. To his surprise, Fish actually called him over as well, telling him to forget about the dishes and come join them. He was very confused, although very excited to be included, and almost broke the glasses he had already picked up, trying to put them down quickly and rush over, almost knocking them all to the floor in his haste. Fish and Nikolai didn't seem to notice, but Butch did who simply rolled his eyes and excused himself to make sure everyone found the door alright.

"Ok here's the deal," Fish started in as Oswald rushed to her side. "Nicki is going to end up joining the Falcone family. As soon as she tries to get out of Maroni's, Falcone plans to pounce. The old man is going to give her an offer she can't refuse and, voila, we have both of those lethal twins on our side."

"So this is good news then yes?" Nikolai asked, clearly struggling to keep up. Oswald had already formed his own opinion on the matter. Nicki being around more? This was good news indeed.

"This is great news love, for us," Fish cooed, taking his tie in her hands and pulling him closer. Oswald tugged at this collar, the room suddenly feeling a bit stuffier. He instinctually averted his eyes but couldn't help glancing back at the two who were now pressed against each other. Fish, whose lips hovered just inches from Nikolai's, continued, "Nicki is going to be very upset with him after he all but tricks her into staying with us. That is going to give us the perfect opportunity to get her on our side when we overthrow him. If we have to deal with her and Victor Zsaz, things could get messy. But if we can get her on our side…now do you see why we have to play nice with the little girl?"

Nikolai may or may not have taken in all that she had said, obviously distracted by the close proximity in which she had said it. He seemed to have gotten the brunt of it, however, and nodded his head before swooping in for a kiss. Oswald respectfully turned his head to stare at the wall, his own thoughts jumbling in his head. Nicki was going to be on their side. He could already picture her presence around the club, always there for him to see, to talk to, to maybe even dance with again…and she liked him. Or at least liked him more than the others, which meant that maybe, as he worked his way out of his lowly current position, she would follow him. Eventually he was going to take Fish down, an idea that made him sad to think about at times, but one that exhilarated him nonetheless. Perhaps once he made something of himself, Nicki would be right there, sharing in his triumph and…

He shook his head and bit back a laugh. He certainly was getting ahead of himself. Oh how this crush was infecting his brain. _One thing at a time, Oswald_ , he thought to himself. _Just worry about ascending those steps to power and all will fall in line._ He allowed himself a small smile, thinking back to how he had sat with Nicki at the bar, talking, how they had danced,. Her company had been so nice. He felt a twinge of sadness, however, as he remembered her discontent. How much she wanted out of the life she led. Part of him felt bad for her, knowing that she was about to be trapped into it. But maybe, maybe he could convince her that it wasn't so bad. Maybe-

"And you," Fish cut into his thoughts. He jumped at her words, turning quickly back to her and seeing that she had abandoned Nikolai and was now standing very close to him instead. She reached up to straighten his coat, her sharp eyes continually glancing back up to his face, judging his expression. "For some reason, that girl has really taken a liking to you. So you're going to be at the head of our welcome wagon for her."

"Yes Miss Mooney," Oswald answered, nodding his head vigorously.

"And Oswald," she released his coat and tapped his nose with her finger. "Don't get too attached."

 **Thank you for reading!**


	13. Chapter 13

**I own nothing but Nicki.**

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

"To sleep, perchance to dream."

Oswald awoke to the sound of his window opening. Propping himself up on his elbows and squinting at the patch of moonlight he could see a figure climbing through it. A siloutte (one that he was ashamed to admit had become very familiar to him) entered softly and delicately, barely making a sound. It was her.

He watched breathlessly as Nicki, came gliding across the room towards him. She wore the dress she had been wearing the first day he met her, and glittered like magic in the moonlight. Her hair fell around her face in tossled curls, framing those large eyes, luminescent in the dim light. All he could do was stare, mouth agape as she reached the end of his bed.

"Oswald?" Her voice was barely a whisper. He gulped and nodded. She smiled, her teeth dazzling in the moonlight. He felt his head grow light as she began to crawl onto the bed, closing the distance between them until their faces were only inches apart, her body on all fours overtop of his slightly raised figure. "You know," she whispered, and he felt his eyelids flutter at her warm breath on his face. "I never thanked you properly for all you've done for me."

"I-i-it was-" He stuttered, his words a jumble in his mouth. She only continued to give him that soft smile before letting her eyes drift closed and leaning in to kiss him on the cheek. He took in a sharp breath at the touch of her lips and had to keep himself from shivering as he felt her giggle tremble against his face. She retreated from him, but only enough so that they were looking at each other, his sharp nose almost touching hers. Her lips were so close and he longed to lean forward and capture them with his own.

"Oswald," she breathed against his mouth. He felt a heat rush over him and knew he couldn't resist.

"Oswald," she said again. His heart was pounding in his chest. He leaned forward, closer and closer, lifting his trembling hand to her face.

"Oswald." He cupped her cheek with his hand. His lips brushed against hers.

"OSWALD!"

Oswald sat bolt upright in bed, his mother standing by the window, having just thrown open the curtains and looking very irritated. Trying to catch his breath, he looked around the room. The sunlight was blaring through the window and much like the previous moonlight, Nicki was gone. "All day he sleeps," his mother was ranting from the doorway. "He promises to help his mother with the furniture. 'I'll be up early to help' he says. But instead he lies around like a lazy cat and leaves his poor mother to move heavy things on her own…"

Oswald shook his head and rubbed his temples as she continued to fuss. It had been a dream. All a dream. "I just overslept mother," he mumbled, climbing out of bed. "I'll help you in just a moment." This seemed to satisfy her a little, for she let herself out of his room, continuing to mutter under her breath as she did so. Crossing the room, Oswald shut the door behind her and pressed his forehead to the cool wood, sighing. With a small chuckle to himself and shook his head. _Oh the effect this woman is having on me._

 **This is a short one but it was buzzing around in my head and I wanted to add it in, if nothing else just to get to write for Oswald and his mother. The next update is going to be much more Nicki-centric. Also…SEASON TWO STARTS TONIGHT I AM SO EXCITED! I've been watching the promo clips on Youtube and I am like a kid waiting for Christmas! Just…AGH!**

 **Big Sexy Beans: Thank you SO SO SO MUCH for those kind words. Honestly I can't tell you how much I appreciate the positive feedback and I'm so glad to hear that you like my story so much. I just have so much fun writing this because it allows me to really dig in and explore all of the amazing characters the show has offered up and gives me a chance to play with my imagination and share my thoughts. I hope you keep reading and that I can keep you feeling that way about this story!**


	14. Chapter 14

**I own nothing but Nicki**

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

"Expectation is the root of all heartache."

Nicki took off her helmet and shook out her hair, doing her best to fluff it back up after it had been pressed down for so long. Normally she wasn't too concerned with having helmet hair, but this was a special day. She was finally going to be able to sit down and talk with Don Falcone.

After all of their interruptions and such, it was beginning to feel as though this moment would never come. But here she was, and there was his black Cadillac parked outside of Fish's club, and there was the door. The threshold to her new life.

 _Well let's not go getting too poetic_ , she thought to herself as she smoothed her outfit and made her way to the door. She caught sight of her reflection in the glass and allowed herself to indulge in a quick once over before entering. Her hair looked… ok, but her black pants and blouse barely showed any dishevelment from the ride over on her motorbike so she called that a success. Entering the club, she found herself immediately scanning the room for one particular familiar face. She spotted him by the stage, attempting to coerce a guitar player into…something…God knew what in this place. She huffed a laugh to herself as she placed her helmet on the bar and took a seat to observed him. He had to look up at the taller man he was speaking too but seemed unfazed by this. His head was tilted up to meet the other mans eyes with his sparlking green ones which were currently alight with pleasantness as he smiled and spoke, the picture of the perfect host, even holding out his hands like Vanna White as he showed him where the dressing rooms were.

The man he was speaking to had an arrogant air to him and she could tell by the way he smirked when he spoke that whatever he was saying was far less than polite. Oswald seemed unfazed by this all the same and simply placed a hand on his arm, rather awkwardly, in comradeship and motioned towards the dressing room. To her surprise, as soon as the guitar player turned to walk away, the inviting look on Oswald's face slid off, as easy as mask, quickly replaced by a look that consisted much more of a cold glare and pursed lips. Nicki shook her head as she saw the sharp nosed man transform in seconds into someone she hadn't met yet, a version of Oswald that looked cold and even a little dangerous. Or maybe she had seen this before. She thought back to his exchange with Victor that night she had her run in with Neeko.

 _"He should pay for this"_ he had said, his voice as cool as ice and his twisted expression not much warmer. Yes, this Oswald was a good guy, a sweet kid, but there was still something about him that made her heart beat a little faster.

As she watched him straighten his ill-fitting suit and march after the musician, head held high, she couldn't help but notice how nicely it still seemed to hang on his thin frame and how the black made his pale features seem sharp. The kind of cheekbones you just want to trace with your fingers. Perhaps he made her heart beat a little faster for more ways than one.

"Nicki." She turned to see Butch in the doorway of Fish's office, motioning for her to come in. Prying her attention from the fascinating young man, she hurried to his beckoning. Entering the room and closing the door she was immediately comforted by the low lighting and comfortable furnishing of the office. Fish sure knew her way around aesthetics.

The lady herself was standing by a less than scenic window to the side, and Butch moved to join her, seating himself on a red, velvety chair beside his boss. Don Falcone sat behind Fish's desk, clearly having made himself at home in her office. He offered Nicki a warm smile and held his hand out towards the chair in front of the desk. Taking his cue, Nicki sat herself in the seat, immediately settling into its plush cushion and rigid mahogany back and arm rest.

"So, the moment finally arrives," Don Falcone offered, leaning forward and folding his hands on the desk. "And not a moment too soon. Your contract ends today yes?"

Nicki nodded, giving the old man a soft smile. She was ecstatic, but it was still bittersweet. Falcone had been good to her and her brother, even though she was a part of a rival family. And Fish and Butch had been a huge part of her life, she wasn't afraid to admit it. Part of her would miss this. This life and these people. But her resolve held firm. She never wanted to be a criminal, and now, after years of waiting, she was finally breaking free of that bondage.

"And you want out of all of it?" he asked, eyebrows raised. "Out of the family, out of our circles. Out of this way of living?"

"Yes sir."Her heart was already pounding in her ears. This was it, her moment of freedom after all of these years. She wondered what it would feel like. What the words would sound like coming from Falcones lips.

"I'm afraid that won't be possible my dear."

Apparently she would never know.

She stood stock still, her expression blank as she locked eyes with the man in front of her. Her mouth worked for a moment as if she were trying to speak but her voice had vanished. _Not possible. No. She had heard him wrong. Hadn't she?_ She felt confused, and betrayed, and a variety of other things that all gnawed at her insides and made her heart go numb as if it were no longer beating at all.

Don Falcone simply observed her for a moment before finally commenting, very simply, "You seem surprised."

 _You seem surprised_ , he said, as if he had just told her that he had recently discovered that he preferred green tea to chai. Not at all as if he had just sent her dreams of eleven years crashing all around her.

"Why is that 'not possible'?" She had found her voice, and it was much angrier and louder than she remembered. "The contract said-"

"The contract ended when you turned 21," Don Falcone cut over top of her, his voice remaining smooth and calm. "That means that you are free to leave the families, as you have decided to do. However, you see why we can't just let you walk off into the sunset yes? You know too much and are far too valuable to lose my dear." He said this with such an air of matter-of-fact calmliness that went straight through her.

Nicki snarled and leaped from her chair, slamming her hands on the desk in front of her. "We had a deal-"

She almost fell over backwards as Falcone also rose from his chair and slapped the table with his own hands, his head hovering over hers in a way that intimidated her more than she cared to admit. "And that deal is off. Meaning that you are no longer under the protection of either family, especially now that you have chosen to leave." She struggled to hold her ground but her expression faltered to one of fear. Falcone was not a man to be messed with and if what he said was true….

"You are free from being a family member which means that we are no longer required to respect the laws governed by the contract. This includes the stipend that is keeping your precious underground orphanage alive. The Flea is it? We aren't obligated to continue with that funding…"

And here came the catch, she saw as she caught the glimmer in his eye. "Unless you come and work for us."

She wanted to spit in his face. Throw something. Scream. She could feel her teeth clench together and her body nearly shake with rage. She glared daggers into the man's eyes and was only more infuriated by the fact that he met her gaze with nothing but cool indifference. Glancing at Fish she saw the woman staring out the window as if the neighboring brick wall were the most interesting thing she had ever seen. Beside her, Butch was staring at his shoes, looking extremely uncomfortable but not a bit surprised. It only fueled the burning fury in Nicki's stomach even more.

She turned back to Falcone with the most defiant look she could manage. "Don Maroni will NOT stand for this-"

"And how did Sal take the news of his 'Bella's' decision? That is what he calls you right?"

Nicki's face flushed. Her guardian had been less than happy with her decision for sure. She felt guilt wash over her. "He…was fine with it-"

"He wasn't. You know that." Falcone said sharply, sitting back down and reclining in the chair. "The girl he raised as a daughter wanting to run off and leave? He was heartbroken. He expected you to take his place you know."

Nicki shook her head and pinched the bridge of her nose, fighting back tears. She didn't need to be reminded, she was well aware that Sal had expected her to "take on the family business" and even though he was ever-supportive of her, she had failed to miss the sadness in his eyes when she had talked to him about her decision.

"Yes even after you threw back all of his kindness in his face, I'm sure that Sal would still take up for you. But I'm afraid it isn't quite that easy my dear. You see, we need the Maroni family for booze, but they need the money we pay for it more. I've seen to it that we are well stocked in the off chance that we come to an impass like this one…but how prepared is Maroni for that kind of standstill? You're father is a powerful man, but I'm afraid he is still beneath us, financially anyways, and money is power my girl. How would he fair off of a couple of months without that particular cash flow?

Nicki leaned forward and propped her elbows up on her knees, covering her mouth with her hands and trying desperately to hold back the frustrated tears welling up in her eyes. Her mind was racing, grasping desperately for a solution, but white hot rage was making it difficult to think.

"I don't need your money. My dad can just-"

"If he funds you we'll take it as an act against us and proceed as I just said."

She took a breath to steady herself and with a new calmness said, "I'll find a way to keep the Flea going myself then."

Falcone snorted. "Good luck."

"I'll think of something." The reprssed rage clawed out with a vengeance as she snapped at him, well aware of how pathetic and childish she seemed with tears on the brink of spilling down her face.

"And what will you do if it becomes more than a money issue?" The threat hung ominous in the air. Nicki was taken aback, unsure of where he was going with the statement. Falcone heaved a sigh. "To be honest, sometimes the street kids you and Victor hold so dear are quite a nuisance. They rat to the cops, steal from the wrong people, and ultimately cause unnecessary trouble. Perhaps I decide that they aren't worth dealing with anymore? They can be removed, or put to work by us-"

"No!" The tears were now streaming down her face. Nicki tried her best to look defiant, but her tears and cracking voice landing somewhere near helpless instead. "Victor won't-"

"Victor is loyal. He'll do whatever is necessary for the family. A trait you are sorely lacking my dear."

"Those kids are my family," she choked out, unable to look at Facone anymore. She turned her eyes to Fish and Butch and could see that Fish had now completely turned her back to her, content with staring at the wall, while Butch's eyes were squeezed shut, his meaty fist rubbing his forehead.

Falcone fixed her with a sagely look. "Then do what is best for them."

For a moment the room stood still, waiting to see how the desperate girl would react. After a long moment, a watery voice whispered, "I want to back to Sal." All of the fight had left her. "I want to back to them."

Falcone looked at the girl in front of him. All of the defiance had fallen away, leaving a broken homesick girl in its place. As hard as he tried to appear indifferent, he couldn't help the pity in his eyes. "I'm sorry my dear…but you've already made your choice."

She sobbed and the discomfort in the room grew tenfold. Fish looked over her shoulder to exchange a look with Don Falcone who had put on a stony expression. A mask.

The crying subsided after a moment and, sniffing and wiping the mascara from her face. Nicki finally looked up. Locking eyes with the man behind the desk. "When do I start?"

Oswald's head perked up from the cash register at the sound of Fish's office door opening. He had seen Nicki go in there earlier, unable to pay her much attention at the time due to his dealing with the jerk musician who "couldn't bear to be kept in a holding room without a mini fridge full of gin and a couch for 'recreational purposes'". Oswald felt his face contort at the mere memory of dealing with him. This was soon forgotten, however, as he caught sight of Nicki exiting the office. Her head was held up like a queen, but her eyes were red and puffy, all traces of makeup gone, except for a few spots of black on her cheeks. With a stone in his stomach that he couldn't quite understand he realized that she must have been crying.

Butch was following her, rubbing the back of his neck and looking like a kicked dog. Neither of the two noticed Oswald, Nicki's eyes focused on the door and Butch's on his feet as he walked behind her. As they crossed the room, Oswald abandoned his task, moving to the end of the bar where he could better hear and see them as they paused, her hand already on the door knob, it evident that she was more than ready to leave.

"So uh…yeah…just be here bright and early at nine pm." Butch tried a sad attempt at a joke as she slipped past him and gave her a weak smile that came nowhere near reaching his eyes. She looked up at him with a dark look that would have made her brother proud. The smile slid right off his face.

"I wasn't really going to leave the family you know. Just the family business." Her voice sounded so hollow. Oswald felt a pang in his chest at the sound. "I was still going to be at Belmontes for dinner every Sunday…now I don't suppose I'm even allowed in the same district."

Butch was the picture of discomfort as he averted his eyes, looking over her head and rubbing the back of his neck. "I'll call you cab," was his only reply.

 **Sorry for taking so long with the update guys! But here it is =) Thank you all for reading! Also...THAT GOTHAM FINALE! Penguin and Zsaz make the top of the list of "people who shouldn't have a cooking show together". I loved that scene where they infiltrated Loeb's kitchen. And the Joker is AMAZING!**


	15. Chapter 15

**I only own Nicki**

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

"A rose by any other name would smell as sweet."

Oswald watched as Nicki left and Butch, looking extremely uncomfortable, returned to Fish's office. She had denied his offer to call a cab, her bike parked outside. He heard the engine roar and speed away. He was, once again, alone in the empty club. Propping his elbows up on the bar, he rested his head in his hands letting himself get lost in his thoughts. The poor girl. He knew that they were trying to convince her to join their family, but whatever had gone on in that room had been something terrible from the way she had looked. Especially seeing Butch that distressed as well truly threw up a red flag for Oswald.

Butch had said she would start at nine… It really would be nice to have her working there. He would get to spend more time with her, and truth be told, he wasn't too popular with the other boys in Fish's employment. It would be nice to have someone to talk too in general.

 _But she looked so sad…_

He shook his head. It was silly for him to worry himself about her like this. He hardly knew her after all. But it didn't feel that way. He had very little experience with relationships, never having many friends even as a child, so he wasn't exactly one to judge how fast these things went. It was nice though. And perhaps she would be helpful to him later. It would be nice to have someone to rely on, especially someone like her, when he finally made his way to the top of the Gotham food chain.

Yes, it was only a matter of time. He had gotten a feel for how the inner workings of the Gotham underbelly worked and he was confident that he could start moving up soon. The main problem he was facing was how to get rid of Fish without her knowing it was he who was responsible for doing so. She would be a valuable friend and a tie he wouldn't want to sever. In truth, he observed her closely and did his best to emulate her charismatic and strong nature, knowing full well that she was not one to be underestimated. It would be sad when he had to overtake her, but, such is life. And maybe Nicki would even be right there at his side, not just as a right hand, but…

He shook his head. He was getting far too ahead of himself. With a sigh he contended himself to get to work, thinking that he had done enough daydreaming for now. Grabbing a rag from under the counter, he began wiping the surface until it shown. As he made his way down the length of the bar, lifting glasses and decorative ash trays as he went, he came across something that made him pause. Nicki's helmet.

She must have left it behind in her rush to leave. Picking it up, he looked around to make sure he was alone, and then raised it to his nose and inhaled. He could smell the sharp burn of hairspray mixed with an interesting jasmine and vanilla scent. Breathing it in, he realized that it must be the shampoo that she used. He allowed himself to close his eyes and indulge in the fragrance, imaging her in his arms, his nose buried in her hair as they embraced.

The door to Fish's office opened, snapping him out of his reverie. He quickly shoved the helmet beneath the bar and began to act busy, watching as a disgruntled Fish and Falcone made their way outside of the club to his car. He caught bits and pieces of their conversation, something about backlash and whether or not Nicki would be controllable. Yes, it was clear that she had not willingly came to their side.

As they exited, he allowed himself to duck under the counter and stick his nose into the helmet one last time before really getting back to work. Maybe she would come to realize that she would be happy here with them. So what if she was of the Maroni family.

 **Here is another chapter! A little short but I wanted to jump into Oswald's head for a second.**

 **Also random side note but I'd love to know what other people think of this, so me and a friend were talking the other day and we came to a conclusion...**

 **Let me preface this with I LOVE JIM GORDAN! SO MUCH!**

 **...that being said...**

 **He's the most useless character on the show. He plays his part as being a symbol (or a white knight of Gotham), but his two main goals have been:**

 **1\. Find the Wayne Killer**

 **and 2. Get all of the corruption out of Gotham, especially in the police force.**

 **Well 1. Bruce actually straight up told him in one episode that he was sick of waiting so just to not worry about it anymore, he'd handle it (I love little man Bruce) and 2. Every major change in the corruption of Gotham outside of throwing your typical crazies in jail and arkham...has been done by Penguin. In Season 1 Penguin is actually the one who let everyone know that the real Wayne's killer hadn't bee caught and where to start looking. Penguin took down all three major powerhouses in the mafia, and several underbosses, getting rid of the factions of organized crime and stopping the bloodshed (and then he took over so...view that how you will). He also got Jim promoted by helping him get black mail on Loeb putting the only good man in Gotham in a position of power. THEN in Season 2 Penguin gets Jim his job back, once again keeping the only good man in Gotham on the payroll and he has now done what Jim has been trying to do for half of this show AND HAS MADE LOEB STAND DOWN.**

 **Don't get me wrong, he always has his reasons and...way of doing things...but the man has gotten results.**

 **Conclusion: Is Penguin is the original dark knight of Gotham?**


	16. Chapter 16

**I own nothing but Nicki**

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

"Be true to who you are and the family name you bear."

 _Maroni walked into Belmontes, straightening his tie in his haste. His eyes scanned the restaurant, his expression becoming more and more irritated as he did so. Frankie, who had entered behind him, seemed less concerned but seeing his boss's anxiousness snapped his fingers at some of the men at the bar. They quickly rushed over._

 _"Where is she?" Maroni asked, his eyes still roaming the room._

 _The biggest of the men gave him a heavy shrug. "She ain't up yet."_

 _Maroni gave him an incredulous look. "You're kidding right?" He glanced at his watch. It's one o' clock! You were supposed to make sure she was up hours ago!"_

 _"Aw boss we went up there earlier but she just looked so damn peaceful. And she didn't get in til late-"_

 _"What are you going soft on me?" Maroni scoffed. With a pointed finger and pointed look he added, "Gabe. You're fired." Gabe only believed his boss for a second before Maroni's stern look broke into a playful laugh. He lightly slapped Gabe on the cheek. The others joined in, but only for a moment before Maroni was back to business, clapping his hands together and shouting, "Well? What are you mooks waiting for? Go wake up the birthday girl."_

 _"I got it," Frankie drawled, pushing his way past the others. He made his way to the back of the restaurant and up a set of stairs to a bare wooden door. He gave the door a hard kick with his boot and stood back and listened. Nothing. With a sigh he raised his fist and began pounding on the door, shouting, "Ay Nick! Open up!"_

 _The door swung open and a newly sixteen year old Nicki stood, tossled-haired and sleepy eyed in her black sweatpants and grey t-shirt. "Hey sleepin' beauty, how long are you gonna keep us all waiting? Your pops is already downstairs." Frankie was gruff as usual but Nicki was unimpressed. She regarded Frankie with an irritated look which he exchanged for what passed as a playful smirk. As she trudged past him, the tall and stubbly man was right on her heels, not faltering in his monotone stream of dialogue. "What are you gonna just sleep the day away? And on your birthday too? What's the matter with you. Get down there."_

 _She made it down stairs to see a gang of large and suited men staring at her expectantly. With a small smile she ran her fingers self-consciously through her hair. "There's the birthday girl!" Maroni announced as if the whole room hadn't noticed her already. Grabbing her face between his meaty hands he planted a loud, smacking kiss on both of her cheeks, causing her to break into a bout of laughter. "Sweet sixteen!"_

 _"Sixteen anyways," Frankie commented, winking at her. She laughed, punching him in the arm._

 _"It's about time you got up! You want your present or not?" Maroni tried his best to seem stern, but couldn't wipe the grin off his face. He rubbed his hands together, clearly more excited to give his figt than she probably was to receive it._

 _"Sure thing pops," she replied warmly, shaking her head at his excitement._

 _"Well look outside."_

 _She moved between the pillars of men to the front door of Belmontes and froze. Her eyes grew so wide Maroni was afraid they might pop right out of her head and her mouth had fallen open in surprise as she saw her present parked out by the curb. A jet black motor bike with a large red bow tied to the handlebars._

 _"No way…" she muttered, frozen in place. A smile broke out over her face and she suddenly let out a squeal, jumping up and down in excitement. Gabe and the others were startled by her outburst but Sal just chuckled and shook his head. Nicki turned and ran at her guardian, crashing into him and throwing her arms around his neck. "Thank you thank you thank you thank you-" her words came fast as she knocked the air from his lungs._

 _Maroni gave a hearty laugh. "Happy birthday Bella."_

 _"Well are you gonna stand there staring at it or are we gonna take this puppy for a spin?" Frankie asked, teasing._

 _Nicki shouted in the affirmative and started to rush towards the door. Maroni watched her with a wide smile, chuckling at her excitement and feeling pretty good about getting her a gift she took to so much. In the past, he hadn't always been nearly as successful, but he had felt good at this one. And from the way she reacted he could tell he had been right on the money. She couldn't wait to-_

 _Maroni's smile slid off of his face as a thought occurred to him._

 _"Bella!" he shouted after her, stopping her just as she had reached the door. Snagging a helmet from the table he tossed it to her. With as stern of a look as he could manage he ordered, "Don't forget to wear your helmet."_

 _Frankie, who had been right behind the sixteen year old, and trying to hide his own excitement over her gift, got a look of mischief in his eyes. He gave her shoulder a light push, making her turn to face him. With a nod and a lazy smile he asked, "Hey kiddo? Who wears helmets?"_

 _Quickly catching on, Nicki lolled her head back and twisted her mouth to the side, doing her best to imitate Frankie's deep, gruff, Italian voice as she replied, "Yella' squares wear helmets."_

 _Frankie laughed and tossled her already messy hair. Maroni bit back a smile at her ridiculous impersonation, trying his best to seem unamused. "You're a bad influence Frankie," he mock scolded. He gave in to their infectious laughter, however, as Nicki and Frankie giggled to each other before turning to the door and her new present again. As the two rushed out the door he shouted after her, "Don't ever let me catch you on that thing without a helmet or I'll knock your brains out before the pavement does!" And then as an afterthought he added. "And don't be late for dinner!"_

 _Nicki turned and gave him a salute as the door closed behind her. With a stupid grin on his face, Maroni watched Frankie show her how to operate her new toy. Just as they go the engine running, NIcki looked back at him through the glass door and flashed a smile before taking off._

Nicki ran her hands over the handlebars of her bike. She was in the park, sitting on the only part of home that she had been allowed to keep. The only piece of familiarity that hadn't been taken from her. It must have been 3am by now and she had been riding around Gotham ever since she had left Fish's sleazy club.

She had been so excited for this meeting with Don Falcone, had been looking forward to it for years, and now she wished it had never had she felt more betrayed, more homesick, and more … was the only word to describe how she had long since cried herself of all tears she had in her and had simmered in all of the bitterness she the end though, she only felt as though it was didn't fix anything and being angry did little closest thing she had to family now were Fish Mooney who had been a sort of mother figure in her younger years and her brother had done her best to seem sympathetic, but Nicki couldn't believe a word of her laments to her "poor, dear Nicholetta" knowing that Fish had been the fore runner in getting her to else would she have suddenly been so accommodating, even with the history of maternal life lessons between them?No, this had been planned for a was sure of it.

Victor had been even less had wanted to call him as soon as she left her meeting with Falcone, but thought it best to wait until she had gotten all of her raw emotions was always looking out for her but he was never one to stand for her when she acted "ridiculous" as he put had raised him to keep his emotions in check while growing up with Italians had taught her to be much more vocal about found him to be even less sympathetic than Fish.

 _An hour ago_

 _The phone rang only a second before he picked up._

 _"Yes?" came a breathy whisper._

 _"Victor?"_

 _There was a pause on the other end of the phone as Nicki sat patiently waiting for her brother to respond. She was perched on a railing by the bridge, looking out over Gotham. The city was beautiful at night, even if it was more dangerous. It occurred to her, as two full minutes passed without a word from the other end of the call, that not once had she considered leaving Gotham, even now as her life was in shambles. As she looked out at the city, she wondered if maybe it was because it had its merits. All the lights did look awful pretty. Or maybe it was just pretty because it was home. Love what's yours when it's all you have. Isn't that what Victor was always telling the kids at the Flea?_

 _Finally, after five minutes passed, Nicki tried again. "Victor?"_

 _"Just one sec-" There was a horrified scream, and she heard him let out a low growl. He finally offered an irritated response. "Kind of in the middle of something-"_

 _She rolled her eyes. Judging by the screams, that much was obvious. She had probably just ruined his sneaking up on someone with the phone call. Not that it mattered. He would still get them. He always did._

 _"I'm a part of the Falcone family now…" she replied. There was another pause, this time out of hesitation._

 _"Ok, talk." He said guardedly._

 _And so she did. She told him everything, from the beginning of her meeting with his (correction…their) boss to right now as she sat on the bridge wondering how terrible it would be if she accidentally fell off._

 _"Don't." he panted, "Be like that." His voice was stern but shaky. Was he running? "Ok look," he continued. "I had no idea they were going to do that, but…Damn it," he suddenly hissed and she heard whimpering in the back ground._

 _"You ok?" she asked, cocking an eyebrow that he couldn't see._

 _"Yeah…" he replied. His voice became a little more distant, as if he was holding the phone away from his mouth. "Just for that, you're losing your fingers." And then into the phone again. "The bastard bit me. As I was saying-"_

 _"As you were saying, you knew this was going to happen." She finished, feeling that now familiar sense of betrayal wash over her. How could he? Her own brother._

 _"No," His voice was much more even now, but she could hear someone's voice in the background, pleading, whining. "I had no idea this was the way he was going to do it. I thought they were just going to try to be…persuasive-"_

 _"Oh they were persuasive all right…" her voice was cut off as a scream rang through the receiver, causing her to wince and hold the phone away from her ear. There was a sickening thud and it was cut short. Now only quiet whimpering remained._

 _"Rude, rude, rude…can't you see I'm on the phone," she heard Victor scold. "Look, I know they didn't exactly handle it well. But is it really such a bad thing? You're always the one that said that family should stick together-"_

 _"Salvatore is my family-"_

 _A gun shot rang through the phone and then there was silence. "I'M your family." Victor's voice was logical and flat. He sighed. "You're the one that was so against us getting split up in the first place Nick. Isn't this a good thing? No more batting for different sides?"_

 _She bit her lip. He had a point. She supposed she should be grateful to be reunited with her brother. But part of her still felt cheated. And part of her still hated the fact that she would be cut off from her other family. After all they had done for her…but no, he was right. What mattered was that they were together, and the Flea would still receive its funding. That was the reason they got involved in the mafia to begin with and it was selfish of her to want to do otherwise._

 _"You're right." She said flatly. He didn't respond, but she heard him groan, as if he were lifting something heavy._

 _"Usually am," he said smoothly. "Now if you'll excuse me, I've got a…package to deliver." The line went dead and she scoffed at his twisted humor. His penchant for violence was one of the few things the siblings didn't have in common._

Nicki might as well return home she reluctance, she climbed onto her bike and out of habit, reached for her helmet, normally hanging on the it was gone, she immediately felt a pang in her chest as she remembered all the times Sal had chastised her for showing up at the restaurant on her bike without was one of the few things he was always adamant , for some reason, she felt a compulsive need to have it on, if only because she knew it would have made him happy.

She struggled to remember where she had left it, and then it came to Mooney's.

 **Hey guys! Thanks for reading! This was kind of the chapter of the flashbacks so I hope that's ok. We'll move forward next time!**


	17. Chapter 17

**I own nothing but Nicki**

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

"The saddest thing about betrayal is that it never comes from your enemies."

She slunk through the door as quietly as possible. The place was deserted. As Nicki's eyes scanned Fish Mooney's club, she could help but notice that the formerly comforting red lighting now seemed ominous to her. Warm like honey set for a trap. Not seeing anyone she hurried over the bar where she remembered leaving it. She looked all across the marble surface, but saw nothing. With a sigh she leaned on the bar, putting her head in her hands. Clearly nothing was going to come easily for her tonight. Or today? She looked at the clock above the shelves of liquor. 4 a.m. Well if all of this nightmare had began yesterday, today was clearly planning to follow suit-

She heard a door open and immediately reacted by hopping over the bar and crouching down on the other side. As she dropped down onto her haunches, she heard Butch's voice and another she didn't recognize. Deep and scratchy, probably another one of Fish's boys. They were coming near the bar but stopped a few feet away. She heard the sound of chairs moving and realized that they were sitting down at one of the tables.

"…yeah he's a weird little dude. Not sure why Fish hired him in the first place," she heard Butch's voice carry over to her. Biting her finger in frustration, she resigned herself to lean agains the inside of the counter. She would probably be here for a while. Part of her realized that it was silly to be hiding. This was technically her new family, her new job now. But she new without a doubt that talking to any of them right now was not on her to-do list this morning. She just wanted to go home, go to bed, and pretend like this had all just been some terrible dream.

"Kinda creepy too, have you seen how he looks when you call him…what is it again?" the other man asked.

"Penguin," Butch replied with a chuckle. "Yeah, if looks could kill right?"

They were talking about Oswald, Nicki realized. She felt a rush of sympathy for the poor man. He had been the only person who had been sincere with her here. Or at all, now that she thought about it. She wiggled her back against the counter, trying to get comfortable, but something was behind her that was making it difficult. Finally turning she saw it was her helmet.

With a silent cheer, she snatched it up. At least something was finally going her way. Now to get out of here. She peaked over the bar, and saw that both men were facing away from her. Good, she could get out unnoticed.

"He's got his uses though I guess," Butch was continuing. Nicki silently hopped over the counter and ducked behind some stacked crates on the other side, she immediately recognized them as booze from Maroni. Attempting to rush behind him, she heard the floor creak and froze. Testing it with her foot, she realized that it was a sizeable soft spot in the floor boards. "He sure did alright with charming Nick."

Her heart dropped. "charming Nick"? She felt the blood starting to rush to her ears as she realized what he was saying. Oswald had been on it as well.

Her blood boiled. Of course, she thought to herself, of course he was in on it. Everything was probably staged from the start. And he was in on it, the scheming, the whole time.

Now she had to get out of here. She couldn't stand to be in this place another second. She had never felt so hurt, so used, so betrayed. Tears of frustration were burning her eyes and she knew now more than ever that she had to get out unseen. There was no way she could face Butch right now. Regarding the crates she got a plan. She used to climb on them a lot when she was younger, them being so weighted and having so many hand hold opportunities. She could probably use them to get over the weak spot in the floor without making any noise and then she had a straight shot at the door.

There were three stacks that were three tall each. She climbed up on the first, hooking her feet into the slats and holding on the top of the second box her left hand clutching her helmet. She shimmied over the second row. Easy. Then she took hold of the third, moved her feet, and felt herself falling. With a panic, she realized that the top box was empty and without its weight, the whole row was crashing down. She let out a yelp as the column fell down on top of her, breaking and spilling sharp smelling liquids all over her and the floor. In all the broken glass and busted wood she just laid as she heard Butch and the other man rushing over. With a look of defeat, she met their startled eyes with a dead look. "Hey boys."

 **Thank you for reading! Responses and Reviews are always appreciated and adored!**


	18. Chapter 18

**I own nothing but Nicki.**

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

"We are such stuff as dreams are made on, and our little life is rounded with a sleep."

Oswald awoke to the sound of his window opening. Propping himself up on his elbows and squinting at the patch of moonlight he could see a figure climbing through it. A siloutte (one that he was ashamed to admit had become very familiar to him) entered softly and delicately, barely making a sound. It was her.

Wait….This all seemed familiar. Oswald cocked his head to the side as he watched the small figure lower herself lightly onto the floor, not making a sound. _Nicki?_ He tried to whisper her name, but his voice caught in his throat. This was just like his dream. Or this was a dream. It _had_ to be a dream…didn't it?

He watched breathlessly as Nicki, came gliding across the room towards him. She wasn't in the beautiful dress he had conjured for her in his dream the last time. On the contrary, she was dressed in a maroon leather crop top and matching shorts that exposed her bare stomache, collarbones, and legs. Fishnet hoes helped to cover her naked limbs but only did so much. He tried to sit up further, taking note of how his leg was tangled in the sheet and how very un-dreamlike such a minor triviality of that was. This all felt so real. Was he awake?

His eyes now having finished roaming her body, Oswald turned his attention to Nicki's eyes, seeing in them a terrifying dead look that he had seen before in her brother. Her expression sent a chill up his spine as he saw her crouch slightly, a lion about to pounce. No, not a dream, this was a nightmare.

He tried to cry out as she was suddenly on top of him but she clamped her hand down hard on his mouth, pushing him back onto the bed. With her other hand, she pulled a knife from the back of shorts and pressed it to his throat. The twinge of pain on his neck from the blade made it very clear to him that he was very much awake…and very much afraid.

She lowered her head beside his ear and hissed, "Don't scream. Don't call for help. Don't. Try. Anything. One wrong move and I slit your throat right here and now. Nod if you understand."

In spite of the danger of the situation, Oswald was fully aware that his shortness of breath was due to more than just the fear for his life. There was something about her hot breath against his ear and the warm knife against his throat that made Oswald very grateful for the blanket that still covered him from the waist down. _Warm because its been carried against her body. Her body that's now right on top of-_

 _"_ Nod if you understand," she hissed again, reminding him that he still not had responded. Squeezing his eyes tight he nodded. Seemingly satisfied with his answer, she sat back on his stomache, releasing her hand from his mouth, sliding it down to prop herself up against his chest. Or to further restrain him if necessary, he couldn't be sure. He felt the knife leave his throat as well, but not by much. Opening his eyes, he saw her on top of him, those brown eyes he had become so familiar with, glimmering with a dark fire in the moonlight that was both terrifying and arousing. He was suddenly reminded of her in the alleyway when had reprimanded the young man from Mooney's bar. Just remembering her overpowering that boy, how cold and fierce she had been, made his pants feel tighter and having the lethal tiger that was Nicki Maroni sitting on top of him, in his bed, with very little clothes on made him so aroused that he was almost ashamed of himself.

"So," she whispered, tracing his neck with her knife, "the whole hero schtick. All Fish Mooney's idea I assume?"

Oswald, who had been extremely distracted by the warm metal moving along his throat for two reasons, realized that he hadn't actually understood her words. "Hero…?"

"You set me up," she whispered sharply, putting all of her weight onto him and pressing the knife under his chin. Oswald gulped, wishing desperately that she would either get off of him…or sit back just a little further…tried very hard to keep his voice low.

"I don't know-" He tried.

"Don't. Lie. You knew from the beginning who I was, and did everything you could to try to get me into the Falcone family."

Oswald's eyes went wide. So _that's_ what this was about. Had someone told her that he had been trying to trick her? Did she really believe that he of all people would be on the front lines for charming girls? The whole thing struck him as ridiculous, but still his heart was racing as he realized what the price of his supposed betrayal would be.

"Miss Nicki, please," he choked out, eyes wide now with fear. "You have to b-b-believe me. I had no idea about any of this until after the night with Neeko." He wasn't sure if he was proud or ashamed of how pathetic he sounded, pleading with her and willing her with quivering facial features to believe him. He wasn't lying, but would she believe him.

Nicki seemed to be thinking similar thoughts. She regarded him with a cold stare, as if hoping to break him with her eyes alone.

"Believe me," he whispered, his breath coming out in short pants now.

Time seemed to stand still for a moment, and he was afraid to so much as swallow the hard lump in his throat for fear of it getting nicked by her knife. Finally, her stony expression broke into one of guilt and regret. "I'm sorry," she whispered quietly, almost inaudibly. She tucked the knife back into her shorts and, much to Oswald's surprise, pressed herself down on top of him, wrapping her arms around him and hugging him. "I'm sorry, I just, I feel like I can't trust anyone now." Her voice was watery, as if she were tryng not to cry, and muffled because she had, much to his shock, pressed her face into his chest. He was unsure of what to do. Her body was flush against his, just barely avoiding the embarrassing lump beneath the covers, and he could feel her warmth through his pajamas. He was so thankful she believed him, wondering if he had really sold himself that genuinely or if she was simply that desperate for a friend right now. He started to return her embrace, but became painfully aware that there were few places he could put his hands that wouldn't be touching bare skin, this though alone making his heart beat start to speed up again, it having finally calmed from the dangers of a few seconds ago. He wondered if she could feel it thudding in his chest where her head lay.

Nicki also seemed to notice her current state and sat up again, cheeks going slightly pink. "I spilled booze on myself at the club," she muttered, tugging at her clothes. "It's all Butch could really find for me to change into with everything else out for dry cleaning." Oswald had no complaints about the clothing but did his best to keep the hungry look out of his eyes, offering her a shy smile instead.

"You look fine." He whispered. She blushed and he suddenly felt his ego swell knowing that he had caused it.

"I-I'm sorry I-" she started, but he held up a hand to stop her.

Propping himself up on his elbows, he smiled a little more confidently. "It's fine," he whispered. "I'm sorry for everything you've been through. And I don't blame you for being skeptical of me."

She smiled a little. "You're the only friend I have right now I think."

"Well I'll be the best friend I can be then." He surprised even himself with this newfound confidence. She offered him a warm smile and was about to respond when a creaking noise caused both of their heads to turn towards the door.

"Oswald?" Mrs. Cobblepots voice came from the other side of the door, and in less than thirty seconds, Nicki was out the window. Oswald watched her dart nimbly across the room and then out and could only blink after her. In less than a minute she was gone and it was like she hadn't even been there.

"Yes Mother?" he resoponded, dazed. Had it been a dream after all?

"Are you talking to someone?"

He touched his neck and felt the small cut where the knife had been. Not a dream. "No mother."

 **Hey guys! It's been so long! Thank you for reading and Happy October!**


	19. Chapter 19

**I own nothing but Nicki**

CHAPTER NINETEEN

"I do desire we may be better strangers."

Nicki dropped soundlessly out of the window onto the piece of tarp lying on the fire escape. She had seen it in the alley on her way in and had thankfully thought to drag it up with her, just in case. She crept down the fire escape, moving as quickly as she could while still doing her best to tread lightly and avoid the horrible ringing noise the metal made when you weren't too careful. Truth be told, her steps already will feeling light.

Oswald hadn't betrayed her. She felt like a weight had lifted from her chest. She wasn't as completely alone as she had thought. _Unless he's lying_ , a voice in her head nagged. But she brushed it away. Of course he could be lying. It was more likely than not that he was. But in this moment, she was happier being wrong than hopeless.

Finally reaching the bottom, she slowed her pace and sauntered up the alley. She was in no hurry to get anywhere, truth be told she didn't really have a place to stay the night. Home was out of the question now, and she would really rather not stay in the new apartment that Falcone had procured for her. Not yet anyways. It was a silly act of defiance, childish even, but she didn't feel herself to be above it currently.

The lights made the city glitter a little. Gotham was awful pretty at night when the dark covered up all the dirty ugliness. Ironically it was when the "bad guys" normally came out to play, but she was well aware that few of them were much worse than she had been, or was, whichever you prefer, so she continued to take her nighttime walks anyways.

She could remember slinking around with Victor when they were still on the streets, nicking wallets and committing minor robberies. Whatever they had to do to eat and feed all of the hungry mouths that always seemed to gravitate to them. The other street kids of Gotham had done that from the start, or at least as far back as she could remember. At the time, she had thought it a little odd that they had chosen her and her brother of all people, especially since many of them were actually older than she and Vic had been. Now, however, it made perfect sense. A stray cat will hang around anyone if they put food out for it.

She cut across the street and a car stopped at the crosswalk. Looking up she noticed that the light was green and frowned as she saw what made them pause. The window had rolled down and a hand holding a few bills appeared from it. A low whistle came from the person attached to the hand and she felt her blood boil for a second before realizing that he had made a reasonable assumption given her current attire. With a sigh she waved him on, shooting him a wink and telling him that he was barking up the wrong tree and had better try his luck somewhere else.

"C'mon," the voice attached to the hand coaxed, waiving it even more. Starting to get annoyed, she sauntered over to the car.

With a smile she cooed, "Looking for a good time sugar?"

She had planned to treat him like Neeko. Be a little friendly, get close enough to slap his face or throw the money back at him, something along those lines that bruised the most sensitive part of most guys, their egos. Unfortunatly, the guy holding the money had his own surprise waiting for her.

As soon as her hand lifted to reach for the cash, there was the bleep of blue and red sirens coming on and something cold around her wrist. Nicki immediately tried to jerk away but the other handcuff was around the wrist of the man in the car. "Ah, ah ah," the voice belonging to the hands tsked at her. "Gotcha lady."

Nicki groaned. _Well_ , she thought to herself, _it looks like I don't have to worry about finding a place to stay tonight now._


	20. Chapter 20

**I own nothing but Nicki.**

CHAPTER 20

"A friend is one who knows you as you are, understands what you have become, and still gently allows you to grow."

Nicki squinted into the car, trying to see the person who now held her captive. If it was one of Maroni's…acquaintances…she might be in luck. Word spreads fast, but not so fast that the cops would know her change in loyalty. She could hope anyways. However, no matter how much she tilted her head, she couldn't see his face, a hat covering the upper half and a beard the lower.

She yelped as he suddenly opened the car door, pulling her forward and using the fact that her arm was still trapped in the window as leverage to keep her from trying anything. She was now against the cold door frame and highly irritated.

"Do you have any idea who I am!" she snapped, making a futile attempt at pulling away. But he held tight, letting out an amused chuckle. A familiar amused chuckle.

"I sure do darling," she finally saw his face as he threw his head back, chuckling. Nicki's eyes widened and her face broke into a smile.

"Harvey Bullock," she said slowly, as if she couldn't believe her eyes. "It's been-"

"Years!" he finished, hooking an arm around her neck and awkwardly hugging her around the door frame. She laughed in spite of the way this pinched her arm. Had it really been years? _Maybe two or three,_ she reasoned with herself, trying to think back. "Crime must have slowed down! Although you'd think a damn social visit wouldn't have been beneath you." He uncuffed her and shut the car door, using it to lean against.

She gave him an apologetic smile. She couldn't remember how young she had been when she had started, but she used to report people to Harvey. Not any of her "real family" of course, but rouge criminals never did much good for anyone, and were more trouble than the mob could ever be. At least the mafia had rules, but the psychopaths, murders, and other various baddies needed taken care of and helping Detective Bullock catch them had been the closest she had ever been to being a cop. It also helped that they started their little partnership when he was still relatively new to the force so it definitely gave him an edge in the GCPD. "I've been…busy…" she muttered, guiltily. "And trying pretty hard not to show my face around too much. It was fine when we were younger and all, but neither of us should really be seen together anymore."

Harvey huffed and shrugged off her excuse. As if a corrupt cop was something new to Gotham. No one would bat an eyelash at him taking advice from the mob, especially when most of the officers were taking orders from them. He chose to let this slide though. "Yeah I'm sure are," he smirked, crossing his arms. "New job huh?"

Nicki gave him a confused look before noticing how he was eyeing her outfit with a mock judgmented look. She groaned, "It's not what it looks like."

"Turning tricks now?" he egged on.

"Hardly! I work for Fish Mooney now-"

"So like I said?"

She punched him in the arm and he chuckled. "Fish huh?" Harvey expected some whispered telling of how she was tricking his favorite underboss into this, or spying on her for that, but was instead shocked to see her brown eyes grow sad and watery. "Hey, what's going on Nick?" he asked, concerned suddenly lacing his voice.

"Nothing," she replied, too quickly. She forced a smile but her voice had taken on a chocked sound as if she were suddenly drowning. "Just…issues with a few mob related agreements…" She shook her head as if to clear it and fought to look cheery. Harvey scowled at her, but didn't push the issue.

"God you sure have grown the hell up though haven't you?" he changed the subject. She gave a grateful laugh. He had as well, but it wasn't nearly as endearing a comment for her to make. He was only fifteen or twenty years older than her but he looked much more worn and tired than he had when he was a spry, twenty year old white knight, saving Gotham one case at a time. "I mean don't get me wrong, it looks like I'd have to pay you to get into my car, but it would definitely cost a pretty penny." She laughed even harder, genuinely this time. He had certainly changed, but thankfully that Harvey humor was still there.

"Speaking of rides…" she started, letting her voice trail off.

Harvey cocked an eyebrow. "Yes?"

"You wouldn't mind giving me a lift to 3rd street? I'm sort of…in between places right now."

Harvey almost gave her a sympathetic look, but hid it quickly, knowing better than to show it. "Sure thing." He gave a mock tip of his hat. "M'Lady."

Nicki smirked. It had been awhile since she had actually slept at The Flea. This should be interesting.

Oswald was rummaging through the medicine cabinet, pulling out several items for examination. He had already inspected his neck and, as he assumed, had a scratch on his throat, slightly to the right and sickeningly close to his windpipe. After the first small wave of chills and relief had passed through him, a larger one of fear had struck him. Yes he was alive…but if Mother saw this…

He knew immediately that he had to cover the small wound. Even though it was barely visible, his mother had eyes like a hawk and never failed to miss the slightest bump or bruise on her precious son. He could already hear her fussing and lamenting over the damage to his person and was now desperately trying to prevent it from happening.

As he inspected the bottles and tubes he realized that this may be more complicated than he thought. They were all flesh colored, but one was a small bottle of a light shade, another was a tube that almost looked like a pen that leaked ivory liquid, and yet another was a tube as well but his one applied the pale skin colored fluid as a sort of paintbrush. And then there were powders. Don't even start with the powders. Some with brushes, some with poofs, some much darker than his mother's pale skin and one even looking to have a slight green tint to it. How on Earth did women manage with all of this? He could feel the well-used term, painted lady, that his mother was so fond of coming to mind. With a sigh, he struggled to swallow his anxiety and opted for just padding down a little of the liquid stuffs that best matched his pale skin.

The results were, adequate at least. He looked closely and decided that as long as he wore a colored shirt it wouldn't be noticeable. Hopefully anyway. Admiring his cover up in the mirror, he smiled in spite of himself. This girl hadn't even worked a day at the club yet and she was already proving herself to be of trouble to him. But he could already tell that he wouldn't mind too much. His life had already become much more interesting, and truth be told, he preferred that to safer and more mundane hands down.

 **abski0206- I am so glad that you're liking my story! It's really nice to hear that people are reading and enjoying what I'm writing. And I'm so glad you think I'm portraying Oswald well. That really is great to hear because he is honestly my favorite character. Robin Lord Taylor does such an amazing job of creating a real live human with such depth out of such a larger than life (typically cartoon-ish) character and I'm trying my best to stay true to that. I hope you keep reading and I hope you're doing well =)**


	21. Chapter 21

I own nothing but the mysterious girl who will have a name by paragraph two of this chapter.

CHAPTER 2

"A pair of star-crossed lovers"

The cab pulled up to Fish Mooney's and the girl inside wrapped the coat tighter around herself as she climbed out into the brisk air. She couldn't help but enjoy the musky scent of it. It kind of smelled like…tea? As she sauntered into the club was greeted immediately by a warmer temperature and warmer lighting. She had always liked the dim red glow of the club, even when she was just a little girl. It had always seemed so thrilling and mysterious, like something straight out of a mystery novel. She rarely got to visit this place anymore but she was always happy to see that it never seemed to change.

"Nicholetta, is that you?" she heard a low voice pur and turned to see Fish herself striding past the bar to meet her, her right hand Butch flanking her as usual. She watched as both familiar faces greeted her with warm smiles which she happily returned.

"Nicki…and Yes ma'am," the girl corrected, laughing slightly at the sound of her full name. People rarely called her by it but Fish always seemed insistent. _When you have a good name, you keep it_. "I'm sorry I'm late Ms. Mooney. I-"

"What in God's name are you wearing child?" The smile on Fish's face had dropped, replaced by a look of disgust and horror at the girl's worn jacket and dingy dress. Nicki became hyper aware of her current state but couldn't help but giggle. She was sure she looked a sight.

"I sort of ran into a couple muggers on my way here-" she started to explain but Butch cut her off with a hearty laugh.

"So I guess we gotta go find the bodies then?" he said with a smile and a wink.

Nicki's smile got a little tighter. "No, I let them take my stuff and go. I was sure they were your run of the mill crooks but…I didn't want to take a chance on taking out some of Falcone's men outside my…jurisdiction. I've already called my brother though. He's taking care of them." Butch's joking demeanor subsided and an awkward tension arose between the three. Fish was quick to put an end to it however, clapping her hands together and suggesting that the younger girl find something a little less…dirty.

Nicki was quick to comply, and quick to take advantage of the opportunity. "Maybe something a little less restricting too?" she suggested, tugging at the tight sequenced material with obvious discomfort.

Butch was all teeth again, throwing his head back and chuckling. "I bet those muggers didn't even lay a hand on you. I bet you threw yourself into the puddle afterwards just to get it wet. Anything to get out of wearing a dress, right Nick?"

"You caught me Butch," she returned with a wink and joined in his laughter. Fish allowed herself a small chuckle but was clearly more interested in moving things along, giving Butch a pointed look that easily translated to _our guest is still wet and cold and dripping gutter water on the carpet._ Without losing his playful attitude, he motioned with his hand for her to follow him, but before she could get too far, Fish stopped her, catching ahold of the sleeve of the worn jacket. Reading her puzzled expression, Nicki began to tell the two about the man in the alley.

"Well who would have though…a white knight in Gotham." Fish mused, cocking an eyebrow as she examined the jacket.

"I know," Nicki agreed, with a hint of adoration in her voice. "Gave me a coat and cab and didn't ask for a thing. I'm going to have to find the guy to get this back to him. It might take a little searching but I have a name so it shouldn't be too hard."

"Which was…?" Mooney drawled. But before Nicki could answer, the door crashing open and all attention was captured by a disheveled looking man stumbling in, out of breath and stammering.

"M-M-Ms. Mooney! I'm s-s-so sorry I-" Oswald froze in his tracks as he was met with

the sharp frown of his boss

the arched eyebrow of her henchman

and a very familiar set of brown, doe-eyes.

Nicki's face was full of amusement at the sight of this new arrival. "Oswald…"she said his name as if it were the answer to a question, or the punchline to a joke. Shooting a grin over her shoulder to Fish and Butch she remarked, "Well…that was much easier than I thought."

* * *

 **So this one was a little short but when a good cliff-hanger presents itself...**

 **Thanks for reading chapter number two and I'll be sure to get the next one up quick, fast, and in a hurry! Feedback is always appreciated!**


	22. Chapter 22

**I own nothing but Nicki.**

CHAPTER 22

"The robbed that smiles steals something from the thief."

Oswald was counting money at one of the tables. Trying to anyways. Nicki had been added to the chain of performers and was currently learning a dance routine from one of the other girls, clad in a strappy and revealing black outfit and fishnets. The ensemble was definitely…distracting… all on its own, Oswald had to admit. He decided this was especially as she dipped and shimmied her body in it, but was surprised as he realized it was made even more so when she would drop the sultry act and nervously laugh, running her fingers through her hair. She was sexy with a darkness to her, but there was still that inextinguishable light that you never saw in Gotham. The whole sight was simply enchanting and he found himself captivated by her.

"I imagine it's hard to count all that money without looking at it," a low voice said in his ear.

With a gasp, Oswald jumped and turned, finding himself within inches of Victor Zsaz. The terrifying man's pale face was blank as he stared down at him and Oswald felt himself shiver in fear, his whole body going cold. Victor's face broke into a wide grin that did nothing to slow the pace of Oswald's racing heart. The horrifying hit man backed away, chuckling, and Oswald realized he had been holding his breath, all of it rushing out in one heavy exhale.

"You're the one who helped her out that night? With the Russian?" There was nothing menacing in his expression or voice, but Oswald still felt his own voice catch in his throat. He could see Zsaz's lip quirk slightly in amusement, but his eyes remained dead and cold, making for an extremely disturbing image. He managed to nod, a sort of quick, jerking motion.

"I thought so," Victor said slowly. "Well you'll be pleased to know that he's been taken care of."

"Did you…?" Oswald managed to say. For all the terror he felt, his curiosity was stronger. He couldn't bring himself to finish the question though.

"Not…exactly…" Victor let his response hang in the air, his lips twisting to one side, as if it were the punch line to a joke that Oswald hadn't understood. The dark haired man gulped, unsure of how to respond, but terribly thrilled by the statement.

"I appreciate you looking out for her. But I would be very angry to hear that you did it for any kind of…ulterior motives…" Victor's head cocked to the side and Oswald felt as though his heart had stopped.

"I-I-I-W-would nev-never-"

"Vic!" A frowing Nicki had hopped off the stage and was making her way between the tables towards them. Victor's face suddenly lightened as he leaned against the table, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Vic!" he imitated in a high voice, raising his eyebrows. She punched him in the arm weakly.

"Stop scaring people," she scolded, pointing her finger at his chest.

"We were just talking," he said flatly, his eyes suddenly much more alive.

Oswald found his voice and did his best to play along, if only to save face. "Yeah, talking."

She gave them both a skeptical look. "About?" she challenged. Victor turned into a blank wall, offering no answer. When her eyes shifted to Oswald he panicked. Was he not supposed to say? He glanced nervously at Victor who stood still as a statue. Then looking back at Nicki he saw that she was staring him down, having obviously picked up on the fact that he was the weaker link.

Too embarrassed to admit that he was being threatened for staring at her, he blurted the next thing that came to mind. "Neeko."

He caught Victor's shoulders sag out of his peripheries and immediately knew he had said the wrong thing. Nicki's eyes widened and her head snapped at her brother. "Victor…did you kill him?"

He paused. "No."

She looked skeptical. He sighed. "I broke his arms and legs…and then he may or may not have gone for a swim."

"Victor!" She started to yell but he was already on the defensive.

"I fished him out after a few minutes. It's his own fault that he couldn't hold his breath any longer. If he wouldn't have gulped in so much water-"

She growled and started into a rant that made Oswald cringe. Victor wasn't nearly as impressed and contended himself to lean back against the table again, his eyes fixed on the ceiling with a bored expression. After a solid minute of furious words such as "how could you" and "direct disrespect of my wishes" and many other things he finally fixed her with his cold eyes and very softly, almost inaudible over her raging, simply asked, "Did he hurt you?"

Oswald saw her pause for only a moment, surprise interrupting her anger. It only took a second to return but as she opened her mouth again Victor held his hand up to silence her. "Can he hurt you now?"

The simplicity of the statement stirred something deep inside of Oswald. Nicki rolled her eyes and pressed her fingers to her temples. "What brings you here Vic?" she sighed, changing the subject.

The uncharacteristic grin was back in a flash, lighting up his bare face. "Why to wish my little sister a good first day of course."

Her face warmed as well. "Thanks," she said sweetly. "Really." He reached up to put a hand on her shoulder, giving it a light squeeze. Oswald suddenly felt as though he were intruding on the familial moment and turned his attention back to the money.

"I'm really glad you're here now. It's nice to not have to only see you on game day or when there's an…issue."

Oswald stole a glance at them. Game day? Nicki caught his look and exchanged it with one of her own that seemed to say, I'll explain later.

Suddenly a ringtone cut through the air. Funky town? Oswald was shocked to see Victor pull a ringing phone from his pocket. He almost would have laughed if he hadn't known better than to laugh at this man.

"Yeah boss?" Victor was all business and Nicki ducked her head, allowing him to walk off to talk in private.

"Game day is a little something we've been doing since we were kids. The two Dons cooked it up so they could test how we were growing as…you know."

Oswald nodded. "So you guys?"

"We have to bring back a drop of blood. Go in for the kill you know? See who wins? We're pretty tied up right now."

"Because she cheated." Victor cut back in. Nicki scoffed but he ignored it. "I gotta go to work."

Nicki nodded. "Where is he sending you?"

Victor suddenly seemed overly nonchalant, shoving his hands into his pockets and shrugging. "The East end," he muttered. Oswald almost expected him to break into inconspicuous whistling. It was a strange persona that the assassin had taken on, almost reminding the short, darker-haired men of the scamps he had read about years ago in school….Tom Finn? Or Huckleberry Sawyer? Something like that. He had loved learning and reading in school but that particular book had made his IQ drop just from reading the dialogue in it, he was convinced.

Nicki frowned. "In this traffic? I hope you don't have to get there anytime soon."

"In a half an hour," he replied, more to the ceiling than to her.

She gave a small laugh as if she expected him to laugh along. When he didn't crack a smile (or remove his eyes from the ceiling, Oswald noticed) she looked confused. "You don't really think you can make it there on time."

"I will," he said slowly, and then pausing before saying much more quickly, "becauseI'mtakingyourbike."

She glared at him as if he had just told her he would be taking her wallet, or her left foot. "No. You're not."

He bared his teeth into a grimace and nodded his head in a mock apologetic fashion, sucking air in through his teeth before admitting in a strained manner, "Yessss I am."

She crossed her arms and pouted. Oswald couldn't help but think of how cute she looked, all the premature age that Gotham stacks on a person falling away to the youthful light that permeated in her. "I'm not giving you the keys…"

Victor gave her a condescending look. "Oooookay."

It occurred to Oswald that neither of the two were probably very concerned about keys of any nature, whether they be for bikes, cars, or buildings. It also occurred to Oswald that the Vicor Zsaz he was witnessing was very different from the cool voiced, blank faced man that most people saw. There was something playful in his manner, and not even in the malicious way that sometimes was apparent when he was dealing with his victims. It was as if that youthful spark in Nicki was contagious. The air was alive with a challenge between the two of them, the tension crackling, but it seemed more as though they were playing a game than anything. This wasn't cat and mouse, it was two lion cubs rough housing.

And then Oswald was snapped out of his reveries as the "rough housing" really began. Victor Zsaz had rolled backwards over the table and was running for the door, Nicki hot on his heels. She slid over the table herself and sprinted after him both of the sibling dodging furniture and people as they went. Victor tripped up a server who was polishing glasses and Nicki caught the two falling cups and sat them on the table before snagging the metal tray from his hand and darting past the man. Victor's hand was on the door when she caught up to him, sliding the metal tray across the floor and jamming it under the door with her foot, causing it to catch and Victor to crash into it as he had attempted to race through. He let out a groan and rubbed his forehead, glaring at her. She laughed, but was cut off as he, in one swift motion, slipped his suit jacket off and wrapped it around her, tying the sleeves to the door handle and trapping her against it. Then with wink and a pinch of her cheek, he was out the door.

Nicki let out a growl of frustration as she struggled against her confinement, but this only seemed to make the knot tighter. Finally resigning herself with a sigh, she turned her eyes to Oswald and gave him a lopsided grin. "A little help here?"

With a small chuckle, Oswald made his way across the room and moved to untie the complicated knot. _How could he make this so quickly?_ he thought to himself. After finally freeing her, he was met with grateful eyes, a tantalizing kiss on the cheek, and a suggestion that made his mouth water.

"Do you want to grab some Chinese food before the club opens?"


	23. Chapter 23

**I own nothing but Nicki.**

CHAPTER 23

"When I saw you, I fell in love, and you smiled because you knew."

Oswald knocked lightly on the door. He paused to listen. Hearing no response, he clutched the door handle and slowly, deliberately sidled into the dressing room. Glancing around he saw that it was void of dancing girls and he exhaled through his nose in relief. He had been worried that someone would see him and, well, a gesture is hardly as endearing if it's ruined by the gossipy squawks of those peacocks Fish tended to hire. _No_ , he thought, _surprise was key_.

With this in mind, he began searching through the items littering the room. There were several mirrors, each decorated with various photographs, cards, wilted flowers, snack wrappers, and all colors of spilled glitter. Looking the makeup stations over, he became a little anxious that he might not even find which one belonged to Nicki. Or worse, he could mix hers up with someone else's.

His lower jaw jutted out as he scrutinized each mirror, looking for clues as to which one belonged to her. His eyes finally came to rest on one in the back corner, more bare than the others. The scarce items scattered on the small counter in front of the mirror were a black makeup bag, grey and white striped scarf, chipped empty cup with a tea bag slumped inside, and a small silver case with "Bella" inscribed across the top. He could vaguely remember Fish referring to her by the name Bella in a mocking tone to Butch once before her arrival and he definitely recalled that scarf being wrapped around her pretty little neck. This was definitely hers.

Approaching the various collections of things, he began moving them aside, clearing a space for what he had brought. As he touched her things, he realized that his palms were sweaty and wiped them on his pants before reaching into his pocket to pull out a small note that read, "Happy first night. Break a leg." and a white rose, its tip dipped in gold. He gingerly placed the flower on top of the note, examined it, and the adjusted it in what he believed to be the most aesthetically pleasing manner, this involving it being slightly diagonal and adjacent to the words. He took a moment to step back and admire his gift. It was simple, elegant, and meaningful, or at least he believed it was anyways, and he gave himself a mental pat on the back. It was perfect, just as it should be.

Part of him commended himself for being so selflessly welcoming and kind to his new friend while another part of him acknowledged that this wasn't exactly an act of "friendship". Victor's words flashed through his head but he quickly stifled them, reminding himself that "ulterior motives" didn't always have to be a _bad_ thing. If one's intentions were correct anyways…right?

His eyes caught sight of a clock on the wall and he realized that it was getting much too close to the girls' call time for him to hang around much longer. Taking one last speculative glance at his handiwork, he scampered out the door.

As Oswald stood next to Fish, being sure to keep her wine glass filled as she watched her dancers, he felt his heart leap as Nicki walked on stage, a gold tipped white rose tucked behind her ear. His jaw was slack as he smiled up at her that feeling he always seemed to get welling up in his chest. Catching his eye from the stage, she touched the flower lightly with her fingers and raised an inquisitive eyebrow at him. He gave a small nod feeling a little uncomfortable all of a sudden. What if he hadn't been who she had expected, what if there was someone else she had though the flower had come from, or worse, wished it was someone else.

But his doubt was trampled when she beamed at him and mouthed the words "thank you" with her dusky maroon lips. Oswald blushed and a dreamy look crossed his face. Her shoulders shook a little with a giggle before she turned her attention to the rest of the crowd to begin the set.


	24. Chapter 24

**I own nothing but Nicki.**

CHAPTER 22

"To be honest, as this world goes, is to be one man picked out of ten."

"So…" she began, twirling her noodles around her chopsticks. Oswald looked up quickly, his mouth full of chicken. "How did you get involved with Fish Mooney anyways?"

Oswald tried to chew his food quickly, not wanting to respond with his mouth full. It had been two weeks since she had began working at Mooney's. The surrealness of the girl had worn off by now and he had grown much more comfortable around her, but that was not to say that he didn't still get tripped up sometimes when she was especially affectionate, or that he didn't still lose his place in the ledger books when it was her turn to dance, but they were close now. They were friends. Oswald had never really had a friend before, at least not as a close of a friend as he had found in her, _and it was nice_ , he thought to himself. But it was not any reason to let manners go to the wayside.

Nicki gave a mock sigh of exasperation as she waited on him to swallow his food. SO impatient, he would have teased if his mouth hadn't been full. She was joking but he would've been slightly more truthful in his antagonizing. She was impatient. That was one of the many things he had learned about her. Over the past two weeks he had been devouring whatever information he could on her. Asking questions, watching, listening to her, listening to others. He knew she loved birds, and hated the sound of squeaky shoes, and that if she ever got anything scented it would always be cinnamon "because it reminded her of Christmas". She got fidgety when she was angry, always clicked her tongue when she was trying to think of what to say, secretly liked reading romance novels (even though she would never admit and would probably cut someone's tongue out if they ever told) and that she couldn't use a pair of chopsticks to save her life. He was actually impressed that she had made it this long without complaining about " how inefficient and laborious" they were before trading them out for a fork. (10 minutes, a new record),

Oswald finally swallowed his food and replied. "Hmmm?"

She gave a small laugh and he smiled back at her. "Fish. How did you start working for her?"

Oswald nodded. "Not without convincing," he admitted. "She didn't want to take me on at first, and her..boys…were adamant about how useless I would be." He spat the word boys as if it left a bad taste in his mouth.

Nicki looked sympathetic. "They can be real jerks sometimes." Oswald appreciated this, but he knew she was also their friend. Or at least seemed to be relatively close to Butch, so he couldn't help but feel that she was doing this more for show than anything.

"To be fair, you can hardly blame them. You see how I stack up to these behemoths- OW"

He rubbed his forehead and blinked at Nicki who was frowning at him, having just rapped him with her chopsticks. "Don't talk like that." She said simply, pointed them at his face.

He felt his face get hot from embarrassment. More than that, anger at her as well for scolding him like a child. He hated when she did that but he would never let her know. Normally he felt powerful around her. His pretty little baby bird for him to play with and protect, but too often she would do something like that and he would be reminded of who she really was. An alley cat, a mafia princess, a million things that secured her place above him in every way. Sometimes he felt she was naïve and needed him, but more often than not he was aware of how delusional this was. This was one of those times. He blushed and turned his gaze out the window. "I just meant that..well that..by…by comparison-" He was blushing furiously now, his heart thudding even louder in his ears over the fact that his silver tongue which he normally prided himself on was failing him. He refused to stop though, whether it be due to embarrassment or stubborn defensiveness, and continued to ramble until he felt her touch on his face.

"Hey." Small fingers touched his chin and gently pulled his face back towards her. Her eyes were large and sincere and he couldn't look away no matter how much he wanted too. "Big doesn't mean strong." She said this sternly, as if she were a teacher and he was a struggling pupil, driving her to frustration. Then, with more of a playful smile she added, "You're bigger than me and I could out you and all of Fish's _boys_ on my own."

He smiled, partially because it was a sweet statement and partially because she was right. "I guess Ms. Mooney saw something in me as well." He said softly, his voice filling with admiration. He felt the hand slip from his face as she sat back in her seat. Nicki seemed to forget her food for a second and eyed him with a curious gaze.

"You're pretty…taken by her aren't you?" It had the weight of a question that had been waiting to be asked. Oswald looked down at the table. Was he? Or rather, was it that obvious?

"She is just…it's impressive you know? For a woman to work her way up…"

"Yeah," Nicki concluded for him, something odd in her voice. He looked up to see a slight scowl on her face as she played with her food. She cleared her throat before continuing, "She's really impressive. She taught me a lot on the whole 'womanhood' front too." Then before he could reply she fixed him with her brown eyes and added, "She seems like she treats her…boys…pretty well."

Oswald wasn't sure how to respond. He wanted to agree out of politeness or perhaps mention that she could be a bit cruel at times, but there was something in Nicki's tone that made him think he was misunderstanding the question. Was she implying something? He tried to search her eyes but she turned them back to her food and began twirling her noodles with her chopsticks again. "She does," he answered carefully, gauging her response. She smirked.

"When I was here, some of her boys would spend half their hours working in the floor and the other half working with her…privately in the back rooms."

Oswald began to blush furiously. "M-m-Ms. Mooney has her…" he swallowed hard even though he hadn't taken a bite-

"Boys she 'keeps around for exercise'?"she finished raising and eyebrow.

Oswald choked on his rice. Coughing and sputtering he saw Nicki turn her eyes back up to him, fixing him with a provoking gaze. _She thinks I'm one of_ those _boys_ , he realized. He was immediately flattered, embarrassed, and confused all at once. Did Nicki really think that he could be..but of course he wasn't one of the ones Fish would choose too…and what did it matter whether he was or not?

Composing himself he tried his best at a smile, fully aware that he was failing miserably. "Well that's…I mean yes…but that's just a couple…not me. Cer-cer-certianly. And not so much anymore because of the Russian-"

"The Russian?" Nicki looked surprised, then rolled her eyes. "Actually, you know what, that's not surprising at all. Nikolai right?"

Oswald nodded, feeling the blood leave his cheeks finally. This was much more comfortable topic. One that he had been debating bringing up to her actually. Normally he liked to keep his secrets to himself but he didn't mind sharing with her. All contracts and history aside he knew that she would never truly be loyal to Moony or any of the Falcone family, and that made her the best confidante he had. Perhaps more than that. He had been toying with the idea of including her in his plans. If he was going to, now seemed like as good a time as any.

He leaned across the table and in a hushed tone said, "They're planning to overthrow Falcone together."

For a moment, Nicki was a wall. Her face went blank and she did not reply. Finally she spoke. "Really," she mused, her tone betraying nothing. Oswald felt himself grow a little nervous at her lack of committal to any emotion or thoughr process but forced himself to brush it aside. This was another thing he had grown accustomed to with her. If she wasn't sure how to respond to something she would become a brick wall. He could only imagine what was going through her mind. "They have been for a while." He soldiered on conspiratorially; he did his best to seem excited about the secret, hoping to draw her in. Get her to open up.

Her eyes shifted to looking out the window and his heart sank. Perhaps he had overstepped…

"Why are you telling me this?" She didn't look at him. Yes it appeared he had made the wrong choice.

"Oh you know," he immediately forced a smile, leaning back in his chair an trying to nonchalantly poke at his food, " you work for the family now…it's just…shop talk-"

"Oswald," her voice was hard as iron but she still did not look at him. He gulped and dropped his gaze to his food. She rarely ever said his whole name, it was normally just Oz. Something about the way she said it now felt like when his mother used his full name. This felt like trouble.

"Honestly, I was just making small talk," he tried, desperately backtracking and hoping he seemed sincere, or at least surprised by her reaction. "Just work place gossip."

"No," He glanced up and immediately locked eyes with her. She was now staring him down. Talking to him as if she were scolding a child. "Oswald, you're asking me for something. Be up front about it."

He hesitated. "I want to take down Fish Mooney." He admitted. "And I think that your help would be very-"

She smiled and held up a hand to stop him. "Say no more." All of the strictness had left her and she was back to the small, sweet bird he had grown so fond of.

"Really?"

"Of course. There's nothing I'd love more that to shut her down."

Oswald smiled. He felt victorious and hopeful, for a moment anyways.

"Hey Oz," she picked at her noodles.

"Yes?"

"Don't ever lie to me again."

It was such a simple statement, but such a weighted request as well. He was caught off guard, but only for a second. That second caught her attention, however, and she snapped her eyes up to meet his. He immediately found himself doing his best at sincerity. "I won't"

"Promise?"

"Promise," he replied. Something in him knew that his promise itself would be the first of many lies. Honesty, in his opinion, was highly overrated.

Nicki, however, seemed satisfied and went back to struggling with her chopsticks. With a grunt of frustration she held them up in front of her face as if she were about to scold them. "Why do people even use these stupid things," she spat and Oswald felt the corners of his mouth lift. _Here it comes_ , he thought, and he mouthed her words along with her as she continued, "They're just so laborious and inefficient." Her eyes shifted to him and he immediately closed his mouth and tried his best at an innocent look. "Did you say something?" she asked, squinting at him.

He pressed his lips together and shook his head, his eyes wide in faux surprise. "No…?" he responded, fighting to keep the amusement out of his voice. She gave him a withered look before turning her attention to finding signaling the waiter for a fork. He fought back a chuckle but allowed a small smile to play across his lips. _15 minutes…_ he thought _, a new record._

 **Hey guys! I am so so so SOOOOO sorry I've taken so long to update. My life has been super crazy. But break is just around the corner and I plan on doing a lot of writing during that now that I'll finally have time! Thank you so much for reading and sticking with me and I love you all!**


	25. Chapter 25

**I own nothing but Nicki.**

Chapter 25

"If you wrong us, shall we not revenge?"

Oswald and Nicki were both at the bar of the club on either side of the countertop, wiping it down of any sticky alcoholic residue. Or at least that's what Oswald was doing. Nicki was only pretending to clean, moving the wet rag around the counter in a way that demonstrated no rhyme or reason and certainly was doing little to clean anything. She was too preoccupied with the conversation at hand.

"I'm just saying…there's got to be a way to communicate-"

"And I'm just saying," Oswald cut over top of her, fighting to sound keep the aggravation out of his voice, "We need to keep this talk to when we're alone."

Nicki pouted and leaned against the bar, not even pretending to clean it anymore. Oswald felt his resolve start to waver. It was hard to resist that face, but he was certain he was right on this front. She kept trying to scheme with him while they were at the club and even her vague whispers set him on edge. He knew better than to take any risks in his endeavors and couldn't understand why she, of all people, didn't seem to grasp how important subtly and confidentiality were.

"But we are alone," she said in a hushed tone, her eyes darting around the wide, empty room as if to confirm this for herself. Oswald felt himself sigh.

"It seems like we are but we have to be careful," he explained, hoping he didn't sound as condescending as he felt he did. "There could be ears anywhere."

With a sigh Nicki began swiping at the countertop again. "Alright, you're right," she admitted bitterly. "But we still have to talk about it."

Oswald knew she was right. He had been doing his best to keep his plans to himself until he was sure of what he was doing. He wasn't used to working with someone else and found it quite the hassle to have to include them in all of the steps. As he finished up his section of the counter and began working on hers (Nicki knew how to do a lot of things, but clean wasn't one of them) he realized that this was in more than just scheming. Daily tasks around the club were something he had always done alone and while he appreciated the company, being in constant conversation with someone could be a little exhausting. He wasn't used to really talking to people unless he had to and then he always tactfully planned his words. All of this constant conversation with Nicki was nice, but it was a bit overwhelming sometimes. She was rarely boring which had been his initial fear when he realized she was so loquacious (he truly hated few things more than mundane chit chat) but the pull for his responses to match her wit and level of interest was a challenge all on its own. Sometimes he used his favorite trick to use with Mother (also quite the talker) which consisted of letting her go on about whatever she felt she needed to converse about and providing the appropriate reactions through sound. _("And then at the store this painted lady tries to sell your poor Mama chicken at price that is double its worth…" "Mhmmm." "…But your Mama says I am no fool you strumpet…" "Noooo." "…And I, who have raised the chickens before, will not be swindled by common whore.")_ Unfortunately, Nicki was much more of an astute listener and quite the conversationalist so this only worked about thirty percent of the time.

"I mean," Nicki continued, propping her elbows up on the counter right where Oswald was trying to get to. "We go and eat Chinese food practically every other day and that's kind of like out 'super secret meeting place'" Oswald fought the urge to roll his eyes and began wiping at the counter all around her, hoping she would get the hint. She didn't. "What we need is…a code or something."

Oswald sighed and was about to agree with her and politely ask her to move when someone else cut in.

"Hey princess," It was one of Fish's boys, and it was clear than he wasn't using the name princess as a term of endearment. "If you're not going to pull your weight, at least let the Penguin do your job for you." Nicki started to protest but realized that she had been covering the countertop while he was cleaning and blushed slightly as she removed her arms and reached for her own rag. Looking up she saw that Oswald had also gone red in the face but she knew it was for another reason.

"I've asked you not to call me that Raoul," he said evenly his green eyes glittering.

"Whatever, _Penguin_ ," he replied, smirking and letting the name drip off his lips like poison. "Hey go get me a drink, _Penguin_."

"He asked you not-" NIcki started to retort, but Oswald shook his head at her furiously well aware that having her take up for him would only make things worse and more embarrassing. Raoul was already smirking, however, and gave a small chuckle.

"My name is Oswald." Oswald said evenly. "What would you like my good sir?" Oswald's manners were clear and ever present, but icy enough to freeze water.

"Rum and coke," he smirked, and then turned his attention back to Nicki. "How does it feel scrubbing tables, princess?"

"Fine," she answered curtly, cleaning at the spot where her elbows had been.

"Yeah," he said, unconvinced. "And how are you liking all these outfits? If Daddy could see his little girl now, am I right?" He gave her a sleazy wink which she pointedly chose to ignore.

"That's an awful big box you got there. Aren't you usually just the money collector?" Nicki changed the subject.

Raoul looked at the box as if he had forgotten about it. He pried open the top and pulled out a couple of fans, all huge and feathery. "They're for one of the new numbers she's cooking up or something," he said, curling up his nose a little. "A couple of them look like their molting-"

"Oh, I didn't know you were her delivery boy now too…" Nicki smirked. Raoul realized he was being mocked and dropped them back in the box, shooting her a glare. Before another word could pass between the two Oswald held the newly poured drink out to him.

"Thanks _Penguin_ ," he said, taking the glass.

This time, Oswald snapped, "Don't. Call. Me. That." He hissed, glaring daggers at the man.

Raoul only smirked. "Ooooo, scary." He swallowed half the contents of the glass in one gulp, and then, to the utter disbelief of Nicki and Oswald, he poured the rest over the counter. "Ooops," he said with a wink.

"Sir I would advise you-" Oswald started.

"No, no little bird man," Raoul cut in. He snatched a hand full of lose feathers and dropped them onto the now sticky counter. "I would advise YOU to stop shedding all over the place."

Chuckling, Raoul began to walk off. Nicki pulled back her arm, ready to spin him around and strike him but Oswald laid a hand on her shoulder and said with a heartbreaking degree of desperation in his voice, "Please!" Nicki paused and looked at him in surprise. His face was red and his eyes were full of hate and unshed tears. "Please, just…its fine." He said, more controlled now.

Nicki's eyes narrowed. "He can't treat you like that-"

"He'll pay for his behavior," Oswald said bitterly, the hate beginning to overtake the tears. "But by my hand, not yours."

Nicki looked as though she was about to protest, but a look of understanding crossed her face and she only pressed her lips together and nodded. "I hate that guy. I hate this place." She murmured under her breath.

"One day," Oswald continued. "One day they'll know better than to be so disrespectful."

His tone was dripping with venom, and Nicki eyed him strangely, almost cautiously, as if she sensed danger from him. But she only replied, "Well, let's get this mess cleaned up."

Oswald took up the rag and began scrubbing angrily at the countertop, growing more and more angry as the feathers broke apart and stuck to the sticky residue, making the job frustrating and tedious.

"Should we say something to Mooney?" he heard Nicki ask. He didn't look up. "I mean, most of these guys are jerks but they really can't just act like-"

"It won't help. She won't care." He snapped. He looked up and saw that her eyes had widened. He was losing his cool and she was clearly not prepared to see him like this. He tried to force a smile but he couldn't keep the anger from his eyes. "It's all natural selection in this place and we don't exactly fit in with the norm."

She was eyeing him warily but she nodded in agreement. "I know," she said. "It's not fair though."

Oswald may have just been frustrated with the countertop, but it was starting to leak into this conversation as well. He loved his little baby bird and how naïve she could be sometimes, but right now he wished he could just smash her rose tinted glasses to pieces. It was times like this that he was reminded she had grown up a mafia princess. Yes she had lived a rough life, but it had still been kind to her in the long run and she didn't always see that sometimes hard work didn't present immediate results. Not fair? Life wasn't fair. Not normally.

"We are the meek and the outsider," he said simply, his teeth starting to clench. "We don't matter as much." He immediately regretted this and looked up to see her reaction, knowing full well he had made an error. She was regarding him with a hard look. He opened his mouth to apologize, but she shook her head and gave a dark chuckle.

"If you prick us, do we not bleed?" she muttered.

Oswald blinked at her, surprised. Was she quoting Shakespeare? "If you tickle us, do we not laugh?" He added, slowly.

She smiled. "If you poison us, do we not die?"

Oswald's eyes were suddenly glittering and he felt a smile creep across his face. "And if you wrong us, shall we not revenge?" He leaned across the counter at Nicki, positively radiating excitement. "How familiar are you with Shakespeare?"

Nicki smiled back but seemed a little wary of his sudden intensity. "Pretty familiar. I've read all of his plays at least five times. Vic and I used to loiter in the Gotham public library in the winter and that section was right near the heating vents. We had to do something to pass the time." She quirked a curious eyebrow. "Why?"

"You said you wanted a code we could speak in?" he whispered, conspiratorially. "I think I just might have the perfect idea."

 **Leti: Thank you so much for reading and for the feedback! I'm so glad you're enjoying this and I'm really glad that you like the way I'm portraying Oswald. I know that his fans have to be the pickiest since he has such a great following! I hope you keep reading and keep liking what I'm doing. I really appreciate the feedback so much!**

 **Domiel: Thank you so much for the feedback! Especially about the spell check! I normally type these up on my phone while I'm at rehearsals and on my lunch at school and everything and then I try to type it up real fast to get it posted. I hadn't realized how many mistakes I had been making. I definitely am going to do more proofreading from here on out so thank you so much for pointing that out to me! Also thank you for the kind words! I'm glad that you like what I'm doing with Oswald and with the Shakespeare stuff! I'm going to try to integrate that into the actual story now as well. Also thank you for commenting on my character Nicki! I was really worried about incorporating my own original character just because I know how easily that can go south or how easily those kinds of characters can be bland. I'm glad that she fits in alright!**


	26. Chapter 26

**I own nothing but Nicki.**

Chapter 26

"Don't spit into the well-you might drink from it later. "

Nicki was onstage with one of the fans that Raoul had brought, Fish Mooney was cooing directions at her as to how to use it, and Oswald was neglecting his ledger book and watching the rehearsal process. Nicki was supposed to be singing a number from Gypsy that included a very coy fan dance and was doing a fine job as far as Oswald was concerned. She had certainly captured his attention. Fish was all about perfection, however, and was continually giving her direction about how to hold herself and what move was appropriate when. He was surprised at how eager Nicki was to accept and work with the criticism, a strange eagerness to please practically radiating from her. As angry as she was at Fish, there was still a childlike need to please her it seemed, and one that Oswald could definitely relate to. He absolutely craved validation from the woman, to a degree that he was ashamed of. She really worked herself into your psyche as a motherly figure which presented a need for her approval. It was almost strange, Oswald thought to himself, how seductive and yet how motherly she was at the same time. It really sucked you in and-

 _Lady Macbeth…_ the thought struck him. The perfect codename for her. He and Nicki had begun creating their Shakespearean code, mostly using the act and scene numbers from different plays in order to hint at plans and ideas. Underneath the ledger book was one she had passed him earlier that day, a napkin with L1:1 scrawled onto it, which he now pulled out to make his own notations on. He had immediately recognized her note as, King _Lear act one scene one,_ the part of King Lear when the daughters are vying for their father's attention while the good daughter, Cordelia, refuses to participate. It wasn't a perfect form of communication but he assumed this was insinuating that they needed to do their best at playing up their adoration for Fish. He would have to discuss the matter further over Chinese food later that night to be certain, but it would explain her performing monkey routine for their boss right now though-

There was a cough and a sniffle behind him. Oswald quickly made sure that the napkin was tucked under the book before he turned to see Raoul looming over him, wiping very indiscreetly at his nose with his sleeve. Oswald felt his nose crinkle up in disgust.

"Ay Penguin," Raoul said, ignoring his expression. "There's a guy coming around to drop off some cash for Ms. Mooney."

"So?" Oswald replied slowly.

"So, *sniff* it's raining and I'm already getting sick," Raoul replied, matter-of-factly. "Wanna go meet him for me?"

Oswald blinked at the man in disbelief. "I mean no offense sir…but why would I do that?"

Raoul coughed into his arm and grunted. "Look Peng-…Cobblepot, just be cool for once and do it, ok?"

Oswald stared at him, clearly not persuaded.

With a sigh, Raoul added, "I'll give you fifty bucks, alright?"

Oswald smirked. That was a deal he could agree to. "Alright," he replied, starting for the door. He thought better of leaving the napkin and turned back to scoop it and the ledger book up before scuttling off, hoping that he hadn't seemed suspicious. Raoul seemed oblivious, however, and collapsed into the chair Oswald had been sitting in, now with his own smirk.

After twenty minutes, Oswald trudged back into the club, soaked from head to toe and thoroughly unhappy. He hadn't realized how long he would be out in the rain and felt chilled to the bone from the drizzle that had turned into a downpour after he had exited the club. Approaching the table where Raoul was now nodding off to sleep, he dropped the bag he had received heavily onto the table, startling the man awake.

Raoul blinked at him for a moment, bleary eyed. Seeing the bag, he pulled out his wallet lazily and dropped a ten dollar bill on the table before snatching up the money and laboriously rising to his feet. Oswald picked up the bill and stared at it for a moment before looking up at the taller man. "Ummm…excuse me sir…but aren't you forgetting something?"

A strange look came across Raoul's face and Oswald didn't have any time to react before the man sneezed directly into his face, spraying him with spit and lord knows what else. Oswald's face twisted into one of absolute disgust as he stared at the man, speechless. Wiping at his nose, Raoul raised the bag as if giving the smaller man a toast and with a chuckle simply said, "Yeah, thanks, _Penguin."_

Oswald watched him leave, simmering with anger. It would be sad to take out Fish Mooney. But he would absolutely _relish_ making this man's demise as miserable as possible.


	27. Chapter 27

**I own nothing but Nicki.**

Chapter 27

"Love comforteth like sunshine after rain."

Oswald was thoroughly tucked into bed and could hear his mother humming in the next room over. It was soothing, to hear her sing, as she banged around pots and pans loudly in the kitchen. Just like when he was a kid. He would have been enjoying it more, however, if it weren't for this awful cold, he thought bitterly. He had called off work and was sure to curse Raoul with every cough and sneeze. The worst was the fever. He knew that his forehead was damp with perspiration as much as from the wet washcloth his mother had insisted on, and despite his burning head, he couldn't seem to stay warm despite the three quilts his mother had secured him with, pinning him down by tucking him in so tight.

It was nice, like when he was a child, and he forced himself to relish it despite his foul mood and lack of good health. He had missed having his mother dote on him, well to this degree anyways, and definitely preferred lying around and being cared for to going to work. Minus one small factor of course….

Nicki with her smile, Nicki with her fierceness, Nicki with her lips, her lips on his cheek, her body on his, the warmth of her-

"Oswald," his mother's voice called from the kitchen, interrupting his fantasies.

"Ye-" he tried but his voice barely came out as a croak from a combination of sore throat and lack of use that day. He cleared his throat. "Yes!" he tried again, weakly but audible.

"You're mama has made stew! It will be done soon," she sang.

Oswald did not reply but closed his eyes and smiled contentedly. He should probably be getting up soon. Not an idea he was overly keen on at the moment though. He could stay in bed a little longer…

 _Knock Knock Knock_

His eyes flew open. Who on earth?

His mother seemed equally confused. He could hear her muttering as she moved to answer the door. Hear her slippered feet shuffling across the floor. Hear the click of the locks and the creaking turn of the knob. And then he heard a familiar, very chipper voice.

"Hello! You must be Mrs. Cobblepot? Is Oswald home?"

Not even the tightness of the covers could hold him as he sat bolt upright in bed, the wash cloth slipping off his face. Nicki?

" _Kapelput_." He heard his mother snap testily. "And who are you?"

Oswald almost fell out of bed as he struggled to remove his legs from the quilts and swing them into the floor. He paused to clutch his head and groan as it throbbed from the sudden motion.

"Kapelput," he heard Nicki correct herself, not losing her cheerfulness. "And I'm a co-worker! I knew he called off sick today so I-"

Oswald dropped down to his hands and knees and peered under the bed for his slippers as he heard his mother cut her off.

"Yes. My dear Oswald is ill and will be receiving no visitors. So if you pleas-"

He snatched the shoes and slipped them on, then grabbed his house coat from the end of the bed and hurriedly shrugged it on as well.

"Oh, well that's alright then," she sounded a little disappointed. "But I brought him some soup…so if I could just leave-"

Oswald stumbled out of his room and down the hallway, through the living room, through the dining room.

"No thank you." He came into the kitchen just in time to see his mother quite literally pushing Nicki out the door. Nicki caught sight of him and her face broke into a grin.

"Oz!" She yelled, fighting to wave at him with her free hand. His mother swirled around to see him, surprise evident on her face.

"It's alright mother," he strained to say, his head and throat aching. "She's a friend."

"Oz…" His mother said, her voice dripping with distaste at the nickname. "You should be in bed, _Oswald_."

Nicki eyed the woman carefully and replied the same. "Of course. No offense… _Oswald_ …but you look awful." Oswald started to protest her statement but couldn't be mad at that warm grin, or her act towards appeasing his mother. Even his mother nodded in approval at this although she continued to eye the girl warily. "So I'll just leave this with you and-"

"No!" Oswald said, a little too hastily. He coughed. "You should stay for dinner. It's the least we could do for the gesture and it would be rude to turn you way…wouldn't it mother?" He added the last part a little pointedly and his mother shot him a hard look but couldn't say no to her little Oswald.

With a sigh she relented. "Alright the girl can stay…but just for dinner. Then it's back to bed with you."

Oswald gave her a grateful look and turned his eyes to Nicki whose lips had formed a playful smile at the exchange.

"Here Mrs. Kapelput! Let me get that for you!" Nicki was already on her feet collecting bowls. They had stored her soup in the fridge and the woman's stew for dinner. It was…awful…but Nicki had still eaten it and had even asked for seconds. She had stomached worse in her time on the streets…probably. Nothing she could think of right now but surely at some point…

"Thank you!" Mrs. Cobblepot gave the girl a smile and clasped her hands before handing her the bowl. Nicki returned her smile and moved to collect Oswald's as well.

"You don't have to-" Oswald started but his mother cut him off and began ranting about manners and how kind it was of the girl to clean the table. But Nicki was barely out of earshot when Mrs. Cobblepot began a new string of dialogue altogether.

"Such a nice girl. But not for you Oswald."

Oswald's cheeks drew color that had little to do with his fever. "Mother it's not like-"

"So handsome my boy is. And so nice and smart," she reached across the table to touch his face. It began as a gesture of endearment but quickly turned into a medical examination as she checked his forehead and cheeks for a fever. "And so warm! To bed!"

He tenderly took her hand and smiled, attempting to reason with her. "Now mother, you raised me better than that. As soon as she finishes I'll tell her goodnight and see her off."

"So sweet my boy. And such manners. But I'll not have you catch your death because of that-"

"Mother."

She sighed dramatically and patted his hand. "Alright. Goodnight my son."

And with one last pointed look at the kitchen where Nicki could be heard washing dishes. She exited the room.

Now alone, Oswald laid his aching head on the table. Dinner had gone very smoothly, despite his mother's complaints and critiques. Nicki had been an absolute delight. He had even caught his mother smiling at her a couple of times, although she was always quick to hide it.

It was nice, watching the two kind of get along. He loved his mother, and he was quite fond of Nicki as well. Perhaps a little too much. They had become good friends and it was easy to blur that line. He was constantly reminding himself that a mafia princess wouldn't want a lover who was so far below her.

He propped his head up on his hands. But maybe, maybe he wouldn't be for long. Not after they put their plan into action. He had always wanted the power, the respect, but now those things seemed so much sweeter with her by his side.

"Oh," he looked up to see her walking in, drying her hands on a dish towel. "You're still up."

He gave her a small smile. "It would be rude of me not to see you out."

She smiled back and sat in the chair next to him. She began pressing the back of her hand to his cheeks and forehead and clicking her tongue. It reminded him of his mother, a though which he quickly pushed aside. Her hand felt so cool against his feverish skin. "It was very nice of you to come."

"You're burning up," she responded.

"I'm sorry about mother. She can be a bit…abrasive."

Now Nicki smiled. "No need to apologize," she said. "My dad was always the same way if any boys came around." She got up and walked into the kitchen, leaving the door open. Oswald could hear the sound of running water. He felt himself wondering how often she brought boys home and how her father would react to him.

"He's very protective?"

"Hah! You have no idea! No one could ever be good enough for his little Bella," she answered from the kitchen. She reappeared in the doorway with the dish towel now wet. "But you know what that's like. Who could be good enough for handsome little Oswald?" She did her best imitation of his mother and it was admittedly pretty spot on. He blushed. "It's sweet," she added.

He thought that maybe he should have been irritated but he felt nothing but bliss as she pressed the dish towel to his face and he felt the cool water against his skin. For a moment they sat in silence as she patted his face gently with the heavenly make-shift compress.

After a few minutes, Oswald spoke, partially to break the silence and partially out of genuine curiosity. "Do you miss them? The Maroni family?"

He felt her pause and opened his eyes. She had gone blank, a hard wall, but he could see a suppressed sadness in her eyes.

"Yes," she said simply. "I do."

"Have you talked to them at all since…?"

"No. I've been forbidden by Don Falcone to contact any of the Maroni family." She sounded robotic. As if this was a mantra she had to repeat. Brainwashed.

Oswald pulled away from her touch slightly, trying to meet her eyes. "But I mean, surely you could sneak in or something, right?"

She didn't reply for a long time and he resigned himself to go answer less wishing that he hadn't brought it up, especially since he gained nothing in doing so. Then finally she sighed and the wall fell from her face. "I could. Probably anyways. But the minute Don Maroni finds out what they did he is going to lose it and he's too…hot blooded Italian…to think logically about it. He really can't afford to pick a fight with Falcone but that won't stop him." She looked like a homesick child and he felt his heart twitch. "I miss them so much though."

Oswald had a million comforting words floating around in his head, but none of them seemed sincere enough to be appropriate. Clever was his specialty, his silver tongue was his greatest asset, but true sincerity was something he didn't normally kept in his arsenal. Nicki seemed to realize his loss for words and give him an obviously forced smile. "It'll be fine though."

Oswald eyed her skeptically. "I can't imagine how. I can't imagine what it would like to be in your shoes."

A steely determination crossed her features and her brown eyes were suddenly dark and ominous. "It'll be fine," she said again. "I'll be home soon enough. After we take out Fish Mooney."

"Soon, soon, soon," Oswald mused.

She went back to holding the towel against his face and he held his hand over top of hers. "Thank you,  
he said. "Truly."

He smiled again and he reveled in the fact that he could change her emotions so easily. Even in this weak and sickly state it made him feel powerful. And there was something about her reliance on him to get rid of Fish, to go back home, that he absolutely relished. He was her hero, and more than that, he was doing her the favor or all favors. And favors had to be reciprocated didn't they.

He felt a little ashamed of himself to think in such a manner. Friends don't do favors because they have to; they do favors for each other because they want to. And this was becoming a beautiful partnership.

"Make sure you eat the soup. It has cayenne pepper in it." Oswald made a face before he could stop himself. She laughed. "I know, but trust me, if there's one thing I know, it's how to get rid of colds. It'll warm you up and help you sweat the fever out and give your immune system a boost. Three bowls of it and you'll be back on your feet."

Oswald sighed dramatically. "Alright," he said. "I trust you." And then his stomach constricted in a very uncomfortable way because he knew he telling the truth.

 **So Nicki finally got to meet Mama Penguin! Thank you all for reading and just so you know, I'm going to start moving into the series here soon. I have a couple more things in mind before Oswald puts his plan into action.**

 **Leti: You're reply absolutely warmed my heart! I am so glad that you like reading these AND THAT YOU'RE WRITING TOO! Please please please let me know when I can read some of your work! I know how long it took me to start doing this (you're really putting yourself out there when you just open up your ideas and work to people like this) and I think it is so great that you want to start creating your own things! Thank you so much for being so supportive of my story and I wish you all the best!**


	28. Chapter 28

**I own nothing but Nicki.**

Chapter 28

"If you have tears, be ready to cry."

Nicki had just left Oswald's apartment an hour ago, and now, back at her own, she was growing more restless by the second. The place Falcone had secured for her was nice, and very close to the club. It was convenient but it kept her in a very concentrated area if all she was doing was going to work and staying home, which was pretty much all she would do unless she accompanied Zsaz on his assignments. It wasn't exactly her favorite thing to do, but it was at least nice to get to spend more time with him. She thought that being a part of the Falcone family would mean more time with her brother, but between her work and his they saw each other about as much as they had before.

She could go visit him now. He should be wrapping up a money dispute by the river. Where had he said he was meeting the guy? On 5th by the old abandoned gas station?

 _That's only a few blocks from Bellamonte's…_ a voice in the back of her mind said. Nicki shook her head. No, no , no, she had to be strong. She would see them all soon enough. _But maybe just a little peek through the window. Just to…check on things?_

She could feel her resolve weaken. That wouldn't be so bad would it? As long as no one saw her?

Against her better judgment, she moved to snag some black clothes out of the closet and pull on her black boots.

"Time for some fresh air," she muttered to herself.

Nicki moved down the street in long, striding steps. She had left her bike at home, feeling that she would be more subtle on her feet. It was a longer walk than she had anticipated, but she didn't mind that. She did mind how anxious she felt. The closer she got to the territory line, the harder she could feel her heart beating. It made her frustrated to think she was so nervous. She had on all black, a trenchcoat and leggings, and a hat to shadow her face. Surely no one would-

"Nicki?"

She froze at the familiar voice. Perhaps she hadn't been as well disguised as she had thought. With a sigh she turned around and took the Fedora off of her head, shaking loose her hair that she had tucked inside of it. "Hey Harvey," she muttered, rolling her eyes.

Harvey Bullock laughed and crossed his arms over his chest. "Don't act so happy to see me," he joked.

Her expression softened. "I'm always happy to see you, you big lug." She tucked her free hand into her pocket and began twirling the hat around her hand, her eyes following the motion of it. Harvey watched the movement as well, his eye brows knitting together beneath his own hat.

"You were up to something and I caught you right?" he asked matter-of-factly. There was a playfulness in his tone but when Nicki looked up to meet his gaze, she saw that his face didn't reflect it. She didn't respond, her lips pressing together into a hard line. Harvey's eyes narrowed. "What? You're just not going to answer me?"

"I should be going." There was a finality in her response that Harvey couldn't miss. He gave her an incredulous look as she placed the fedora back on her head and started marching past him in the direction she had come.

"No no no no no," he said, catching her by the arm and turning her to face him. She glared at him but made no sign of protest. "What's gotten into you lately? I don't see you for years and now I run into you twice to find out that you've switched sides on the families. And you always have this look on your face like your dog just died. I mean, we used to practically be partners and now you can't even have a civil conversation with me?" For a moment she just glared at him, but when he refused to break eye contact, she averted her gaze, suddenly becoming extremely interested in the pavement. Harvey grunted and let go of her arm. "Fine. Be like that then princess," he muttered scornfully. He took the hat from his head and rubbed his forehead with his fist. "I'm gonna get a drink," he moaned, turning to start towards the bar across the street.

Nicki watched him cross the road. Watched him put his hand on the door handle. Watched him start to open it.

"Wait!" her teary cry came across the street to the man and made him pause. He turned around to see her flooded eyes pleading to him for the other side of the road. "I'm not in the Maroni family anymore." Her voice was barely loud enough to reach him.

With a sigh, he motioned for her to join him. "It looks like you could use a drink too."

"So now I work for Fish," Nicki finished, wrapping her hands around the sweating beer glass. She had just told Harvey everything. Well, everything about how Falcone had all but black mailed her into joining them. She had left out the plan with Oswald to overthrow Fish, knowing full well that Bullock was…close…with the woman.

"Damn," Harvey took a swig of his own beer and shook his head. "That's really rough." Nicki nodded and took a sip of her drink, making a face at the bitter taste. She hated beer, but Harvey had ordered it for both of them as soon as they walked in and she wasn't about to turn it down. "But hey, there are worst fates then ending up with Fish Mooney though, am I right?"

There it was…it was an attempt at comforting, or at least the closest thing the man could really do, but it still stung Nicki like a bee sting and she took another sip to hide the involuntary scowl on her face.

"Yeah, I guess so."

She traced her finger around the rim of her glass and the cop watched her for a moment before trying a different tactic. "Hey! Do you remember the first time Fish got you all dolled up? You met up with me afterwards to tip me off on that drug deal downtown and I didn't even recognize you 'cuz I'd never seen you actually look like a girl before!" He gave a hearty chuckle at the memory and Nicki felt herself smile as well.

"Oh my God," she replied. "And I was an hour late because it took her so long to teach me how to use that stupid eyelash curler." She giggled.

"No, you were an hour late because you couldn't walk in those god forsaken heels she put you in." Harvey shot her a wink and her giggles turned into full blown laughter. He joined in, slapping her on the back and adding, "You looked like a new born colt stumbling around on those stilts!"

Barely able to speak, Nicki sputtered out, "She made me walk around the block in them about ten times so I would get used to them. And it took that long too!"

"Yeah but now look at you," he said, wiping his eyes. Their laughter started to ease. "I've watched you jump rooftops in those things. And you use them as a better weapon than most people use a knife."

"Trademark Fish Mooney," Nicki said, fondly. "She always said they were, 'the one weapon nobody was ever gonna confiscate'." She did her best to imitate the woman's low, sexy voice, but fell short. No one could do Fish Mooney like Fish Mooney.

Harvey laughed anyways. "She's a bad girl, but she's a GOOD woman."

Nicki didn't lose her smile, but her brow furrowed. "Yeah," she said in a troubled voice. "She really is." As angry as she was the woman, she couldn't help but acknowledge all the good that had come from her time at Mooney's. It almost made her reevaluate all of the plotting she had been doing with Oswald. Almost.

Harvey gave her a funny look and she quickly shot him a smile. "So how are things down at the GCPD?"

Harvey groaned and rubbed his face roughly with his hands. "Essen is pairing up with new white knight of Gotham. I swear this kid's gonna be the death of me."

"You got a new partner?"

"Yeah. Gordon. John, or maybe James? I don't know. I only met him once and I already can't stand him." Harvey took a swig of his beer and Nikci smirked.

"Yeah, cops that are trying to do some good? The worst." Her tone was dripping with sarcasm and Bullock narrowed his eyes at her.

"You say that like half of them don't work for your old man," she snorted and forced herself to take another drink. Harvey continued, "The problem with him isn't that he's trying to do good or anything. It's just that he thinks he's going to come in and clean everything up. And it's just not that easy."

"Or you would have done it already." She tried to exchange glances with him but Harvey just turned back to his drink. For a moment he didn't respond, and when he did, it was just about how piss warm the beer was. Nicki smirked and half-heartedly agreed.

 **Hey guys! I am SO SORRY that I haven't posted in so long. I promise that I'm getting back to it now. With finishing up everything for graduation I had zero time. But NOW I AM OFFICIALLY A COLLEGE GRADUATE WITH THREE DEGREES! WHOO! Thank you all for reading and for sticking with me! I love and appreciate you so so so much!**


	29. Chapter 29

**I own nothing but Nicki.**

Chapter 29

"All the world's a stage. And the men and women merely players."

Oswald closed the umbrella as he stepped back inside, close at Fish Mooney's heels. The woman looked flawless, as usual, a lot of that due to his keeping her sleek hair dry. He had truly grown to despise his position as umbrella boy, the closer he and Nicki came to their plan taking hold, but he had to admit that he would never fail to be impressed by her attention to her appearance. She always looked amazing. Always. Oswald felt himself fighting to keep his eyes from roaming over her figure in her gold sequenced jump suit.

"Dear Oswald," Fish addressed him, making him snap to attention. "What would I ever do without you?" Oswald gave a nervous laugh. Her smile grew a little wider. "Always keeping the rain off my head with such unprotesting devotion. " She placed taloned hands on either side of his face and gently pulled him down to her level. He could smell her lilac perfume. She placed a gentle kiss on his cheek and then in a hushed voice, whispered in his ear. "Why don't you have Lazlo fix you a drink to chase the cold out of your bones? I don't want my boy getting sick on me."

She pulled back and gave him wink before turning on her spiked heels and sashaying away to greet some of the early arrivals at the club. Oswald took a deep breath to try to calm himself as her intoxicating presence lingered.

"Well that was like watching a cat play with a mouse."

Oswald's head whipped around to see Nicki standing next to him, examining him with frown.

"You don't work tonight," he blurted out, immediately realizing how stupid he sounded.

She cocked an eyebrow at him. "I'm aware…Fish wanted me to come as a…guest."

"Well you look," he took her in, and couldn't help but notice how pretty she looked, this further jumbling his already flustered mind. "Nice."

He offered her a smile, which she returned, but he didn't miss the strange look in her eyes. "Nice," she scoffed. "Well I guess we can't all look 'Fish Mooney' good can we?"

She seemed to be joking, but there was an edge in her voice that he couldn't place. For a moment his mouth worked but he formed no words. His quick mind and silver tongue failing him. What was wrong with her?

"Is everything…alright?" he locked his eyes onto her brown orbs and was surprised that she was the first to avert her gaze.

"Yeah fine," she said her smile disappearing. "You put on a good act Oz." His brow furrowed. Why was that a bad thing?

At a loss for how to respond, he took the next best course of action he could think of and changed the subject. "Did you get my message?"

She nodded, still seeming distracted. "Yeah, Edmund's first lines from King Lear. Subtle." Her eyes shot to his so suddenly that he almost flinched. "And fitting." She added.

Oswald gave a nervous laugh. "I was afraid you'd miss it. I've been right at Ms. Mooney's side for the past two days so it was hard to be subtle. I just wrote it on that candy wrapper and hoped you'd read it before you threw it away…are you sure you're alright?"

Nicki finally gave him a smile, but it still didn't reach her eyes. "Yeah,I'm just being silly. Don't worry about it Oz."

And with that, she turned and made her way to Fish, leaving Oswald very confused and very much wanting that drink he had been promised.

 **Hey guys! So sorry for going on such a hiatus! I haven't given up on this I just had to let some other things take precedence over it. I love you and thank you so much for your support and for just taking the time to read =)**


	30. Chapter 30

**I own nothing but Nicki.**

Chapter 30

"Oh, when she is angry she is keen and shrewd."

Nicki and Fish were sitting at one of the tables, people watching as the crowd in the club began thinning.

"I swear," Nicki laughed. "I don't remember him."

"Sure you do babydoll," Fish cooed, leaning closer as if to whisper a secret. "Picture him without the nose…"

Nicki gasped and then broke into a trill of laughter which Fish immediately chimed in with as well, their faces turning in towards each other as they pressed their foreheads together.

Nicki had been doing her best to stay on Fish's good side. And everything was going according to plan. She and Oswald both seemed to be growing closer and closer to the woman over the past week and judging by the note written in lipstick on her dressing room mirror, Oswald was becoming very confident with the way things were going. Nicki took another drink of her wine, almost draining half the glass. Fish quirked an impressed eyebrow. "Well, well, well. Look at you," she cooed. "Drinking like a fish."

Nicki gave her a small smile, her eyes already starting to become misty from the wine. "You mean like you or an actual fish?" Even in her alcoholic buzz she was aware that it was a bold joke to make, so she was relieved when Fish chuckled at her.

"Clever, clever. I'm glad you picked up something from me." Nicki returned her smile. "It really is nice to have my girl back," Fish said next. Nicki was caught off guard. It wasn't like the woman to be sentimental. For a moment she hesitated.

"It's good to be around you too."

It sounded convincing. Nicki knew it did. Because she meant it. _Get it together Nicholetta,_ she thought to herself.

Fish, clearly ready to move past the sentiments kept talking about the man's bad nose job but Nicki was lost in her own head. It really was nice to be with Fish again. Despite the betrayal, Fish had taught her so much. She had been the closest thing Nicki ever had to a mom. And Don Falcone had always been an upstanding man. Even if he was a rival, she and Maroni had always agreed that if someone was going to be in charge over him, Falcone was the man. Could she really go through with this with Oswald? Yes, she was hurt and angry, but maybe this was taking things too far.

"Nicki!" she snapped back to attention.

"Where is your mind at?"

Nicki blinked and jumped for the first thing to come to mind. "A spot on the glass," she murmured. "Just wondering if it was lipstick or a water mark." Fish frowned and snapped her fingers at Oswald who had been talking to Lazlo at the bar. She shifted her gaze to Nicki's glass. "What is that anyways?" She inquired breezily.

Nicki felt mild embarrassment as she realized she had no idea. Lazlo had told her when he poured it for her but she could not remember and was not familiar enough with these things to be able to make a decent guess at it either. "I'm not sure…"she said sheepishly.

Fish gave her an exaggerated look of disappointment which didn't bother Nicki nearly as much as what came next. "Figures. Salvatore Maroni probably never let you drink a drop did he? Not that he would know a Merlot from a Sweet Red-"

"Don Maroni specialized in wine at Belamontes. He just sells the booze," she retorted. Fish fixed her with a careful gaze.

"So you're quite the connoisseur then?" Fish challenged her with a smile that was more just bared teeth.

Nicki felt herself blush. "He…wouldn't let me be caught with a drink…" she admitted.

Fish gave her a smirk and with a small hmf she took the glass from her. As she watched Fish delicately sniff the drink and wrinkle her nose, she could feel her decision to undo her becoming easier and easier by the second. Her sentimental thoughts still lurked in the back of her mind but she was beginning to just blame those on the alcohol.

"Miss Mooney?"

Nicki hadn't even noticed Oswald's arrival at their table. But there he was, all smiles and servitude. "Take a look at this." Fish held the drink up to him and after a moment's hesitation, he took it gingerly, as if afraid it would bite him. Fish, however, was a vision of placidness, reclining back in her seat and draping an arm across the back. She was a leopard, eyeing her prey, and Nicki suddenly felt nervous for Oswald.

"Y-y-yes, M-m-miss Mooney." Apparently Oswald was nervous too. He examined the glass for only a moment before seeing the smudge. His eyes immediately widened and he began stammering an apology.

Nicki quickly tried to cut in that she wasn't positive the smudge wasn't her own lipstick anyways but Fish silenced her with a finger and a clicking tongue.

"Yes, it's disgraceful isn't it," Mooney purred. "And that's not even the tip of the ice berg. Do you know what's in that glass?"

Oswald was frozen for a moment, radiating nervousness. He gained his composure however, and swirled the remaining liquid in the glass, raising it to his pointed nose. It was such an elegant gesture and Nicki found herself momentarily distracted by it. For those few seconds, he wasn't the boy who served the wine, he was someone who belonged with the people drinking it. And then the stammering returned. "A m-m-m-erlot. 1998?"

He handed the glass back to Fish who's lips parted into a predatory grin. "That's right my dear little Penguin. Not only was our Nicholetta served wine in a dirty glass, but it's a cheap ass wine I wouldn't use to cook a dog's steak with." Her voice was a low pur but it dripped with menace.

Oswald gulped. "I'll be sure to pass on the message. I'll be back with a better selection in just a moment."

Fish leaned forward in her seat. "And it will be taken out of your salary for the night." She added matter-of-factly.

Oswald's eyes widened, "But Miss Mooney, I…With all due respect, Lazlo is the one who served this in the first place-ugh"

Without warning, Fish had thrown the remnants of the wine into his face. Nicki's jaw dropped as she stared at them in disbelief. Oswald stood frozen, his eyes squeezed shut. His face was burning red and his knuckles made white fists at his side. After a moment's recovery, he wiped the liquid from his eyes and opened them. The green orbs were full of shame and he would make no eye contact with anyone as he silently leaned over the table to collect their glasses. Fish caught him under the chin with one of her claws and turned his face towards her. "Don't ever argue with me little Penguin," she hissed in a patronizingly sweet voice. Oswald's mouth pressed into a thin line as he averted his eyes and nodded, but Mooney wasn't satisified and grabbed his chin, forcing him to look back at her. "Say, 'Yes Miss Mooney'."

Nicki felt embarrassed for him as he quietly answered back, "Yes Miss Mooney." Fish released his face and he straightened up, now with the glasses in hand. He snuck a glance at Nicki and quickly averted his gaze, radiating mortification. She felt every part of her being reach out to him, and felt helpless just sitting there and doing nothing. Without another word, he turned and marched to the kitchen as quickly as his legs would carry him. Nicki watched him go, saw him slap the glasses on the table in front of Lazlo, bark something at the other man, and grab a half empty bottle of whisky from behind the bar before disappearing into the back room. Lazlo rolled his eyes and set to work picking out another bottle of wine.

"Gotta keep those boys under your heel," Fish purred, winking at Nicki. When Nicki didn't respond, Fish reached across the table to brush a piece of hair from the younger girl's eyes. Nicki flinched away and Fish's eyes narrowed. "What's wrong baby girl?" Her tone was soft, coaxing, but her eyes were hard, daring her to speak up.

"Nothing," Nicki finally responded. Fish leaned back,a content smile on her face, which was quickly lost when Nicki added, "Don Maroni always treats his men with respect."

Fish remained placid but Nicki could feel the suppressed anger. "Well," Fish bit back, "I suppose that's the difference between what men have to do and what women have to do to keep up in this business."

"Yeah," Nicki agreed. "Or it's just the difference between an underboss trying to assert their authority and a boss not needing to."

A hard look flashed across Fish Mooney's face, but Nicki was already up and making her way towards the back room.

 **As always, thank you all for reading! The feedback warms my heart. I can't tell you how much I love writing this.**

 **Also, PineappleGernade, OH MY GOSH THANK YOU SO MUCH! You're comment means so much and I am so glad that you like where this story and the way the characters are developing. Getting into their heads is the best part about doing this so I am so glad you think I am doing these wonderful characters justice. And that my OC doesn't suck…hahaha I know people are pretty against them so I'm glad Nicki is being received so well. Thank you so much!**


	31. Chapter 31

**I own nothing but Nicki.**

Chapter 31

"Your lips are like wine and I want to get drunk."

Oswald slammed the door to the kitchen behind him and leaned against it. With his sleeve, he swiped furiously at the sticky wine on his face and then regarded his sleeve in disgust. He wanted to shout, but instead stifled himself with a gulp of the whiskey. It burned much more than he thought it would and he was sent into a coughing fit, managing to keep most of it down, but feeling some of it leak from his lips.

What a mess.

He could feel hot tears threatening to push their way from his tightly closed eyes and he hated it. He hated this place, and he hated how embarrassed he was, and he hated how disgusting the alcohol felt on his face, and his hair, and his suit. His best suit. The first suit his mother had bought him after skimping and saving. And more than anything else, he hated…Fish…Mooney.

He took another giant swig of the whiskey, this time prepared for the burn, relishing it even. And then as he fought to steady himself. He held the bottle at eyelevel and felt a new feeling come over him. His rage subsided and he felt an icy calm run through his veins as he thought about breaking the bottle. Taking one of the broken glass shards and going back to Mooney's table. Using it to slice her smug face before burying it in her-

 _You'll never do it._ The voice came from the back of his mind, purring like that familiar voice he knew so well. Hated so much. _Coward._

With a blind rage he felt his throat clench in an animalistic growl as he pulled his arm back, ready to send the bottle flying across the room-

When suddenly the door moved behind him, opening and sending him sprawling on the floor.

With a yelp, he tumbled to his hands and knees, the bottle rolling away from him, not breaking, barely spilling.

"Oh my-Oz I'm so sorry," said the last voice he wanted to hear right now. Or at least the second to the last. After Fish.

Oswald clambered to his feet and turned to face Nicki and her horrible look of sympathy. He didn't want her to see him like this. And he definitely didn't want her looking at him like that. He could feel his face burn under his matted hair.

"Are you ok?" she asked.

"Fine." Oswald knew he had given her a curt response and he felt he should be ashamed when he saw her face fall a little. It felt admittedly good to throw her pity back in her face though. How kind of her majesty, the mafia princess to come check on her lowly…

Nicki's face hardened and he was surprised to see her shake her head angrily and start to move past him. Should he apologize? He didn't want to, at all. But the more logical part of his brain was definitely indicating that it was a good idea to. Before he could finish his internal debate, however, she had picked up the fallen whisky bottle and rounded on him.

"I can't believe her," she hissed, examining the bottle to see how much was left. "I mean, where does she get off thinking she can just treat people like that?"

Oswald felt himself calm a little. "We'll show her," he said in a low voice. "That….bitch."

As soon as the word left his mouth he had to fight to hold his resolve. The part of him his mother had raised was appalled by the term. But God did it feel good to say. Even the look of shock on Nicki's face wasn't enough to squash the satisfaction he felt from it. The venom and the snap of the consonants, he relished it.

Nicki eyed him strangely for a moment before raising the bottle to her lips and taking a swig from it, her nose wrinkling at the taste. She thrust the bottle out towards him as if it were the most unpleasant thing she'd ever encountered. "Here," She encouraged him. "I've had enough."

Oswald moved to cross to her, and discovered that the task was a little easier said than done. He had to sidestep to keep on his feet and realized that he would not have been able to walk a straight line if his life depended on it. Nicki's lips quirked in good natured amusement. "It looks like you have too."

Oswald grimaced at the comment, and her face sobered. She put the bottle down on the counter and grabbed a clean wash cloth off of a rack by the sink, running it under water and instructing him to have a seat. Oswald thought about protesting but couldn't resist the idea of not standing any longer. He clumsily sat down in a nearby chair and let his head loll back, closing his eyes and feeling the world spin around him.

He heard the sink stop running. Heard her light footsteps pad over to him. And felt her presence. Felt the warm wash cloth press against his face. He let his eyes slide open and saw that she was only inches from him, wiping at the sticky residue coating his cheekbones. It reminded him of when he had been sick and she had come to visit him. Only this time was different. Something about the way her eyes were trained on his face, and the way her other hand was pressed against his chest, made his heart beat a little faster. Her eyes roamed his face as she gently wiped away the wine from his cheeks, his nose. And then she did something that made his blood run hotter than it had moments before, but this time for an entirely different reason.

Her eyes drifted to his forehead, but the wash cloth did not follow. Instead, she leaned in, pressing her hands on either side of his face and lightly kissing him there. He closed his eyes. As she started to pull back, his hands flew up to hers before he could even think to stop them. She paused at his reaction, peering into his eyes and he ducked his head, his cheeks going red in embarrassment. Damn this booze and its effects on his-

Her hand slipped under his chin and tilted his head to meet hers. Then, she placed a soft kiss on his lips. He immediately moved his hands to her hair, securing her in place as he felt the world fall away around them. All that existed was the two of them.

Her body moved and she slipped onto his lap, deepening the kiss. Oswald's hands immediately went to her waist. His fingers felt their away along her body as if they had a mind of their own and he allowed it to happen. He could feel her soft fingertips slide down his jaw, down his neck, one hand pressed to his collar bone as her other one tangled into his matted hair at the nape of his neck. With a small moan, he pulled her closer, pressing their bodies together, his tongue touching her lips, her lips parting-

BANG

Oswald leapt to his feet, dumping Nicholetta into the floor and almost knocking himself off balance as well as the door flew open to reveal a very imposing, and very shocked Butch.

For a moment, no one said a word. Butch looked as though his eyes might fall right off his head and Oswald's jaw had gone slack, unable to explain or defend the situation. Nicki, who was surveying all of this from the floor, was the first to recover.

"Well," she said, as indignantly as she could manage. "Which of you gentleman is gonna help a girl back on her feet?"

Oswald stole a glance between her and the still frozen Butch and moved to offer her his hand, not missing the burning cheeks on the girl he was assisting. Before she could take his hand, however, Butch had come to his senses and was coming towards them both like a bull. "I think you've done enough, _penguin._ " He snapped the last word with the same venom Oswald had used when he had called Miss Mooney a bitch. And it was more of a slap to the face this time than it had ever seemed to be before. Oswald stepped back to let Butch pull the blushing girl to her feet. She was embarrassed. _Of course she is embarrassed,_ his inner voice hissed. _She just got caught kissing you of all people._

As Nicki stood back up, she swayed in her intoxicated state, just a little, but enough for the imposing man holding her to notice. His eyes narrowed as he leaned in to scrutinize her face. "Are you drunk?"

"No'm'fine," she slurred, before shaking her head, as if to clear it. "No. I'm. Fine." She tried again, this time over enunciating the words.

Butch glared at Oswald and grabbed the front of his shirt in his meaty hand. "This is low, Penguin, even for you."

"I wasn't-I wasn't taking advantage-" Oswald had found his voice and it was working quickly and furiously.

"Save it." Butch let go with a shove, causing Oswald to stumble back. He watched helplessly as the Goliath of a man walked Nicki from the room. Just before they passed through the doorway, she looked over her shoulder to meet his gaze, cheeks pink and eyes full of apologies. And then Oswald was left alone.

 **N-Replicant: Agh! Thank you for looking at my theory! I guess it's because I have a thing for underdogs but I have been so adamant about how effective Oswald is for Gotham from the beginning. I LOVE your theory about him being like a "first Joker" too! I never would have thought about that but it totally makes sense. There is such a difference between the mob boss bads and the real villains.**


	32. Chapter 32

**I own nothing but Nicki.**

CHAPTER 32

"The course of true love never did run smooth."

"Oswald!"

Fish's voice felt like an axe to Oswald's aching head. He had just walked in, stumbling into the welcoming dim lighting of the club from the harsh sunlight outside. He was tired, hung over, and that appeared to be the least of his worries.

Fish was crossing the space between them in strides that even Oswald had to admit were impressive for the shoes she was wearing. More impressive than that was the look in her eyes that burrowed into him and made him feel as though he would burst into flames. He had thought the sun was intense this morning, but it was a dim bulb compared to the fire radiating off of his boss.

"Guilzine told me a little story last night and I would absolutely loooove to hear what you think about it," she snapped. Oswald felt himself literally retreating from the woman, shuffling his feet backwards away from her. There was always something sinister in the honey-like pur the woman usually used when she was scolding her boys, but this was another level entirely.

"Miss Mooney, I can explain-" he tried, but she jutted a finger in his face, wagging it and clicking her tongue sharply.

"Did I SAY I wanted to hear you tell the story?" Her voice was lower, and the mock mothering intonation had returned but the violent undercurrent was still tangible.

"No Miss Mooney, but I-"

"Quiet." She snapped. And he clenched his jaw shut tightly. Fish was a good deal shorter than him, but he still felt himself swallow hard as she glared up into his face. He rarely saw this wild side of her temper. He hadn't since the night Nikolai's men had tried taking advantage of Nicki. But then he supposed it made sense that now it would resurface…

"Butch told me he walked in on you trying to take advantage of our dear, sweet, baby girl while she was intoxicated-"

Oswald couldn't bite his tongue. "That is not what happened. Miss Mooney please-"

"You didn't know she was intoxicated?" She said, flatly.

That hit a nerve, much more that Oswald cared to admit. He could feel himself growing desperate, and out of both emotion and tactic he made no effort to hide it. "She kissed me. She kissed me first and I just thought…" He trailed off as Mooney's eyes had widened and her head slowly tilted to the side. "I thought…"

"Sh sh sh sh…" His bosses demeanor had changed. She was suddenly softer, and was reaching out to him with a hand to cup both of his cheeks. A look of pity had taken over her eyes but he couldn't miss the smile tugging at the corner of her lips. "That she actually liked you?" Fish finished for him. She pursed her lips into a sympathetic look. "Oh Oswald, my silly boy. I should have known. I should have known as soon as Butch told me. You weren't being bad, you were just…misguided."

Oswald fought to keep his mouth shut. He was burning with indignation at her patronizing tone, but this was good. Or better at least. Now he wasn't in trouble.

"We'll forgive the indiscretion," she continued, "And of course you'll have to apologize to Nicholetta. The poor thing is probably mortified." Oswald cringed and Fish smirked. She gave him a small pat on the cheek before adding, "You should have listened to me. I warned you to stay away from her. It's not good for person to dwell too much on pipe dreams."

"Yes Miss Mooney," Oswald said softly. He ducked his head and started to move passed her but she stopped him with a taloned hand to his chest. He stood up a little straighter as she pointed a sharp nail towards his face.

"One more thing…" All warmth had dropped from her and only sternness remained. "The next time you cross that line, I'll be sure her brother is the one having a…talk…with you about it."

And with that, she turned and strode away, leaving a very unsettled Oswald behind.

Xxxxx

Nicki stepped out of the cab and into the sunlight the next morning (and she used the term morning loosely…it was one in the afternoon) and winced. Even with her sunglasses, the blazing sun was making her aching head feel as though it might burst. So this was what a hangover felt like. No wonder Frankie had always been so irritable with her when he had suffered from similar ailments.

As she stumbled into the door of the club, she felt a newfound appreciation for Fish's penchant for dark spaces and removed her sunglasses with a sigh. Some of the showgirls were already at work on a routine, Butch was reasoning with a drummer about salary, Fish Mooney was relaxing in a booth watching the girls, and Oswald and Lazlo were at the bar. Lazlo was wiping down glasses and Oswald (who judging by the way he kept rubbing his forehead was feeling similar to Nicki) was thumbing through record books for…whatever it is he looked for in those. Nicki realized that she actually had no idea what they kept track of. Frankie had tried to show her once but she had taken one look at the hieroglyphics on the page and zoned out.

As she made her way over to Oswald, she could see over his shoulder that his pages contained the same type of gibberish. His long fingers spun the pen as he worked. Those long fingers that had tangled into her hair, held her…she could feel her face get hot at the memory.

"How are you feeling," she asked softly.

Oswald jumped and swiveled on his stool to face her. To her surprise, he didn't calm down when he saw it was her, but seemed to get more tense. "I umm…." He started. "What?"

She gave him a small smile. His eyes were wide and captivating and she remembered how they had looked at her last night. What his pointed nose felt like against her cheek, the way she could taste the sweet, sticky wine on his lips… "How are you feeling," she repeated.

He gave her a weak look before averting his eyes. "Headache," he said simply. And then he turned and went back to his book, clearly ending the conversation.

For a moment, Nicki stared at him, caught off guard and unsure of what to do with this cold version of Oswald she hadn't seen before. After a few seconds deliberation, she slid on the stool next to him, and couldn't miss the way he stiffened as she did so. "Am…I interrupting something?"

He cast her a glance and then rested the side of his face in the palm of his hand, covering his cheeks that she could only guess were turning pink based on the color his ears were gaining. "No…well not really…I…." His eyes darted away again (in the same direction as before, she noted and wondered if maybe his looking to the right was a sign for his discomfort she hadn't picked up on until now) before he finally put down his pen with deliberation and looked at her. "How are you feeling."

Nicki was slightly taken aback by the question. It wasn't sympathetic, or concerned, but calculating. As if he were looking for something. His eyes were a different kind of intense than they had been the night before and his lips, those soft lips that had been so sweet from the wine, were in a hard line. Unsure of what to do, she tried to give a light laugh that fell a bit short of convincing. "Hungover," she stated, tapping her temple.

"We both had too much." He did not return any of her joke, but said it as a blunt statement, his face remaining stoic. Or his best effort at stoic anyways. If it wasn't so obvious that something was wrong she might have laughed at him for his attempt at it because it definitely wasn't a disguise he wore well. His bright eyes and demeanor were much too expressive to be convincing on this front. He turned back to his book. "I apologize for my behavior last night." He added the last part while delivering another side long glance to the right and Nicki realized exactly what the issue was. He wasn't looking away out of nerves, he was looking at Fish Mooney, seeing if she was paying attention.

Nicki was mortified. She had thrown herself at him, all but pinned him down on a chair, and he hadn't wanted her to do any of it. He had been so nice (as nice as he was to everyone) and she had mistaken his politeness for….But she had thought that maybe he had actually wanted her to. Maybe he had actually liked her.

She thought back and realized that she had misread everything, feeling her cheeks flare up in embarrassment. He was always cordial, always polite, to everyone. How conceited she had been to think she was special. Of course, she should have known. There was such a huge difference in his quiet shyness towards her and the absolute captivated attention he reserved for Fish Mooney. She was stupid for not noticing. And not only had her advances been unwelcome, she could have gotten him in trouble as well. Suddenly she realized why he didn't want to talk to her, and realized that there was no place she wanted to be LESS than on this bar stool next to him.

"Yeah, me too." She tried to keep her voice even. "I shouldn't have…I'm sorry." He looked up, his eyes calculating again. She tried to hide her humiliation with another laugh, but it caught in her throat and just sounded strangled. She was sure she looked pathetic under his watchful eyes and looked away. "I just wanted to tell you that…ummm…"

Xxxxxx

"I shouldn't have…I'm sorry."

Oswald watched her, trying to keep his expression blank. To disguise his embarrassment and keep his pride. But this was not going the way he had thought it would. He felt his iciness he was trying so hard to maintain melt a little as she gave choked laugh. She almost seemed…hurt. But why? She was the one who had been embarrassed. Embarrassed to have been caught with him. It stuck like a knife in his memory that she had made no effort to defend him when Butch implied that he had taken advantage of her. When he hadn't.

 _Who are you trying to convince Oswald_ , said a voice in his head.

"I just wanted to tell you that…ummm…"

Oswald watched her fix her eyes on the table. _Tell me what? To stay away from you? That you're sorry? That it did mean something?_

The last part drifted through his mind and stirred more in him than any of the others.

"…that we should just pretend like last night didn't happen."

And there it was. The knife. The expected becoming reality. She wasn't hurt by his passiveness, she was embarrassed to talk about last night.

"I just think that…you know…we made a mistake…" _A mistake…_

"And I don't want to ruin our friendship because of…" _Friendship…_

Oswald had heard enough. He held up his hand to stop her and she finally met his gaze. She looked anxious and fidgety. Oswald put on his best, fake smile. The one he normally reserved for difficult musicians and contrary guests. "Honestly, I don't remember a thing," he said, in what he hoped was a reassuring tone.

A look of relief washed over her face and she threw her arms around his neck in a hug. Oswald let the faux look slide off his face as the gesture left a bitter taste in his mouth, but he quickly recovered it before she could pull back and see.

She looked relieved, but there was still something in her eyes that caught Oswald's attention. What it was though, he wasn't sure.

"Partners?" she asked hopefully, jutting out a hand with an extended pinky.

Oswald held his smile, finding it a little easier to do so now. So they would never be romantically involved. That was fine with him. As long as she was still an asset, he could be content. Reaching out and linking his pinky with hers he agreed, "Partners."

 **Thank you Guest and PineappleGernade for the reviews! I'm so glad you guys are following this and I hope it's still living up to your expectations. This definitely isn't one of the better written chapters but I wanted to take a minute to clarify the unclarified feelings in their relationship. Also, we're about to start moving into the plot of Season one so fasten your seatbelts y'all!**


	33. Chapter 33

CHAPTER 33

"The voice of parents are the voice of gods, for to their children they are heaven's lieutenants."

Selina Kyle sat on the curb outside of the alleyway watching. People passed her to and fro, all, much to her disappointment, with wallets tucked safely away in pockets and secure purses, out of reach of her hungry claws. She heard her stomach rumble and sighed. Since Clyde had been kicked out, no one had really stepped up to take his job, so the Flea had been suffering a bit of a food shortage due to lack of grocery shopping. Not that she really took from that pile much anyway. She had always been more self-sufficient than most.

Just then, she saw a sight that made her tired eyes glitter. On the other side of the street a woman in an expensive dress had just sat down outside of a café, placing her leather and expensive looking purse down next to her expensive looking shoes under the table. Sucker.

Selena walked a ways down the sidewalk before crossing making her way back up to where the woman sat. The purse was under the table, partially hidden by a table cloth. This wasn't going to be a typical snatch and run. She would need a plan.

As she contemplated the best course of action she was annoyed to find her thoughts interrupted by the sound of a ball bouncing on the sidewalk. A little boy sat on the stoop, bouncing a tennis ball against a parking meter on the street and catching it as it ricocheted back to his hand. A lightbulb went off in Selina's head.

As the ball bounced toward the parking meter, she snatched it out of the air. The boy protested but the older and taller girl in the leather jacket made a menacing stomp in his direction and hissed and he whimpered and ran inside.

Smiling to herself, Cat bounced the ball off the sidewalk a couple times, eyeing it with a satisfied smirk. Then she began making her way up the sidewalk, bouncing it along in front of her as she went.

Bounce. Catch. Bounce. Catch.

She approached the lady at the table, never looking at her but constantly watching out of her peripherals.

Bounce. Catch. Bounce. Catch.

The lady spared a glance her way, one of distaste, and then turned back to her overpriced cup of coffee.

Bounce. Catch. Bounce. Catch.

Selena was only a foot away from the table now. She made sure the lady wasn't paying attention.

Bounce. Catch. Bounce.

Selena sent the ball sideways toward the table.

"Sorry! Sorry!" She shouted to the ladies squeal of surprise. Selena chased after the ball as it rolled right underneath of the table. Perfect.

"Just got away from me," Selena added as she dropped down to reach under the table for the ball. The woman looked very unnerved, but moved her legs for the girl, muttering about street urchins and absent parents.

And then Selena grabbed her purse.

In one swift motion, she had slung the shoulder strap around her body and was beating it up the street, as fast as her legs would go. She heard the woman screaming, yelling for help and for her to "come back or else", and Selena laughed to herself. But then she heard something that cut her amusement short.

A whistle and a deep man's voice shouted, "Stop!"

Glancing over her shoulder, she saw that the voice was, in fact, wearing a GCPD uniform. Selena groaned and tried to run faster, but she could hear long strides and heavy footsteps gaining on her.

She cut a corner, saw an alley, and made a mad dash for it, hoping beyond hope that there was something climbable in it.

As she rounded the wall into the alley, two things happened. One, she became aware of the fact that it was a dead end with no climbable objects whatsoever, and two, that didn't matter because she was already caught.

The breath left Selena's lungs as something snagged the strap of the purse from behind, holding her in place and causing her feet to leave from under body. She fell to her behind with a thump and a groan and turned just in time to see the cop rounding the corner as well. He was also stopped short, but for a different reason. That being, the click of a gun being cocked.

"Thank you officer," a hollow voice said. "But I'll take it from here"

Selina looked up to see the man standing over her, his hand still grasping the purse strap. Victor Zsaz.

It's an odd feeling, to be relieved and terrified at the same time, but that was exactly how Selina felt. She knew she was in the clear now, but the bald man still sent a cold shiver up her spine that had little to do with the wet pavement she was sitting on.

The cop, however, was not conflicted. With a quick nod, he held up his hands and backed out of the alley before taking off as fast as his wobbly knees would carry him. Victor smirked.

"I had everything under control," Selena said, haughtily, hopping back up on her feet and jerking the purse strap out of his hand. Victor quirked an amused eyebrow. He didn't keep track of most of the street kids, their faces blurring in his mind, but this one had always stuck out to him. She was a brave little thing with an attitude. What was her name again? Sally? Serena?

He decided that it didn't really matter. "A thank you," he said flatly, "would be nice."

"I said, I had it under control," she said again, crossing her arms. Victor let his face go cold. He could see her tense a little, but she kept her face in a steely scowl. She was scared, of course, but she'd be hard pressed to show it. He could respect that. He could make most grown men grovel with a look, but this little girl, she had moxy. Still, it was important to keep up appearances.

"Manners." He said it without inflection or emotion but the meaning was clear. It wasn't a reminder, it was a demand.

She stayed silent for a moment, but then muttered, "Thanks." He grinned a cheshire cat grin and gave a small bark of a laugh. She seemed to relax a little, or at least take on a more relaxed façade. "Why are you even in this quarter? It's not mob territory."

Victor felt the corner of his mouth twitch upward at her gumption. It wasn't often any of the street kids did more than scuttle off when he was around them. He leaned backwards, propping himself against the brick wall behind him and crossing his arms. "I'm waiting on my sister," he said slowly. "You're just lucky you picked my alley to run into."

The girl's eyes lit up. "Nicki's coming?"

He could tell that she was fighting to keep the excitement out of her voice. This girl always wanted to play it cool. He could see why she was Nicki's favorite.

"Sure am," a voice answered from the street. Both Victor and Selena's heads turned to see Nicki coming into the alley. She had on a black coat that came down to her knees and large floppy black hat hid most of her face in shadows. She tilted up the brim to meet the two.

"What's new pussycat?" Nicki asked, giving Selena's shoulder a playful shove. Selena tried to look indignant but couldn't keep from smiling a little.

"Your little pet almost got herself into some trouble," Victor said smoothly. Nicki's eyes widened and Selena shot him daggers from her eyes. He chuckled at her bravery.

"I was fine," Selena huffed, crossing her arms over her chest. "I don't need the big show you put on kicking Clyde out or anything, ok?"

Nicki said nothing for a moment, a conflicted look on her face. Finally she sighed and shook her head. "Fine then. You talk instead. Tell me what happened."

"I just stole some rich ladies purse!"

"It was actually kind of clever how she-" Victor chimed in.

"Not. Helping." Nicki said cooly. Then to Selena she added, "Why?"

Selena shuffled her feet and looked away. "I dunno…Clyde was always the one that "bought the groceries" at the Flea and now the food isn't coming in as often. I figured since I could take care of myself I'd just leave the Flea food to the other kids…" She started playing with the zipper on her jacket. "I mean…they're just too…you know…dumb to do it on their own so…" She finally looked up to see that Nicki's face had softened.

"Ok." She said simply.

"I'm not in trouble?" Selena tried to keep the shock from her voice, keep it nonchalant, but it was difficult.

Nicki shrugged. "Vic and I have too much to do without me having to worry about you too."

Victor gave her a confused look and she winked at him. Selina smiled.

"Don't. Get. Into. Trouble." Nicki said firmly to her, causing the smile to slip. Selina nodded, wordlessly.

And with that the two siblings turned on their heels and began to exit the alley. Just before they left though, she couldn't help but catch their conversation, mostly because they were saying it so loudly that she almost felt like she was supposed to be hearing it.

"Hey, Nick, do you remember our old thieving days?"

"Yeah Vic, we always went to the _theatre district_. _Less cops_ and _more rich types_."

She could almost swear that they both even turned to give her a pointed look as well, just before they turned the corner.

 **SORRY SORRY SORRY IT TOOK ME SO LONG TO UPDATE! Those of you still reading...I LOVE YOU!**


	34. Chapter 34

**I'm baaaaack! Sorry about the wierd hiatus! My crazy grown up life got in the way. But if anyone is still interested in this story, I'm not finished yet! Lots of love guys! xoxoxoxoxoxox And ps-I only own my little Nicki**

Nicki and Victor stared up at the apartment complex, sizing it up.

"Soooo we're just looking to see if he took Fish's money?"

" _Kept_ her money," Nicki corrected. She spotted a fire escape on the side and moved to judge how much taller it was than herself. "He's a runner between her and a bunch of the fences. He claims he keeps getting shorted by them, but most of them are our kids. And the good ones too." It was about three feet over her head.

Victor followed her, nodded slowly. He crouched down on one knee, allowing her to climb up on his shoulders before standing back up. "How much?"

Nicki stretched her arms out and took a hold of handrails. With Victor giving her a boost, she climbed up onto it. "Does it matter?" She asked, looking back down at him. "A couple thousand or so in all but-"

"Appearances have to be kept," Victor finished, knowingly. He looked around for a moment, assessing the best way to get himself onto the fire escape. After a few seconds he saw Nicki bracing herself against the railing and holding out a hand, a couple feet above his head. With a running start, he ran up the wall parallel to the fire escape and propelled himself towards her, snagging her hand. Once she had caught him, he entwined his fingers in the grating and pulled himself up next to her. "You didn't really need my help for this."

Nicki smiled at him, straightening up. "No, but I wanted to spend some bonding time with my brother."

Victor gave a bark of a laugh and started leading the way up the fire escape. "Fourth floor window?"

Nicki scurried past him, humming in affirmation.

The two approached the window.

"Who is this guy again?"

"Raoul."

"Should that mean something to me?"

Nicki didn't respond for a moment, examining the window. She could probably break off a piece of metal from the railing and use it to pry open-

CRASH

Victor had shrugged off his coat and wrapped it around his fist before punching it through the window. Nicki winced and gave him an incredulous look. He shrugged. "If he's one of Mooney's guys he won't be home right?"

There was a scream from inside. Poking their heads through the shattered window, the sibling caught sight of a beautiful woman with dark hair and wide, fear stricken eyes. The startled woman made a dash for the door, almost slipping on the linoleum in her socks.

"Shit," Victor hissed, reaching for his gun. But Nicki had already dove head first through the window. She missed the shattered glass , and rolled as she hit the floor, popping up onto her feet and throwing herself at the door, just slamming into it as the woman began to pull it open.

"Now just hold on Miss-" Nicki started, but the woman dissolved into tears.

"Keep the noise level down…now," Victor said, his voice even. He had clambered through the window and was walking towards her, gun raised.

"Not necessary," Nicki said, warningly. She placed a hand on the ladies arm and did her best to look comforting. "Are you Roul's…girlfriend?"

The woman sank to the floor crying. "Whatever he did, I don't know anything about it, I swear!"

Victor rolled his eyes. Nicki fought the urge to do so as well. "Look we aren't going to hurt you, we just had to look for something. That's all….sorry about the…um…window…" The woman continued to cry. With a sigh, Nicki reached into her pocket. "Here. This should be enough to cover the damage…with enough for you to go grab yourself a coffee and get some fresh air for a minute? Clear your head?" Nicki gave her a pointed look, her comforting tone getting just a little bit sharper. "Do you follow me?"

The woman looked up at her with teary eyes, confused.

Victor's patience was waning. "Look," he barked. "We're paying you to get out. Leave. Don't tell anyone we were here. Then you don't get hurt. Go."

The woman clambered to her feet and started for the door again.

"And find a new guy too," Nicki, shouted after her. "You're way too good for him."

The woman took one last look at Nicki before hurrying out the door.

"You're too nice," Victor huffed, pocketing his gun and shuffling through papers on the coffee table. Then, before she could reply he added, "So who is he again?"

"Works for Mooney…" she tried, looking on a countertop for anything incriminating.

No response.

"Always has his hair greased back?" she tried again. Victor had made his way to the bedroom door. "Always wears this really awful smelling-"

He pulled it open and immediately coughed as the stench of cheap cologne broke out. "Oh," he croaked. "This guy."

Nicki smirked. "See anything?"

Victor's held his nose as he poked his head into the room. He gave a choke of a laugh. "Yeah, he made your job pretty easy." Nicki moved to join him, and saw a collection of red envelopes thrown on a dresser. Miss Mooney's trademark money transfers.

"Well…that was easy."


	35. Chapter 35

**Hello hello hello!**

 **Here is ANOTHER chapter!**

 **Reviews are appreciated but honestly if you're just reading I'm happy.**

 **Love you all!**

 **And Ps-Sorry for forgetting a Shakespeare quote in that last one. Whoops! Won't happen again!**

Chapter 35

"Something is rotten in the state of Denmark."

Oswald tapped his pen on the countertop, bored out of his mind. Fish Mooney and Butch had been in her office for hours talking about…something too important for him to hear about apparently…and Nicki was off gallivanting around with her brother doing…something else that was apparently too important for him to be concerned with. He sighed and put his head down on the cool marble. One day…One day he was going to be the ringleader of all this, and not just the one who sat backstage and tried to grab glimpses of the main action.

The phone rang loudly, and he reached lazily to lift it from the receiver, not bothering to lift his head. "Hello," he sang cheerily, not bothering to even open his eyes. "You've reached-"

"Oz?" came the voice from the other end of the line.

Oswald's head popped up. "Nicki! How was-"

"We figured out who's been stealing Fish's money! And you're gonna love this. Guess who?!"

Oswald rolled his eyes. He despised guessing games. "I don't-"

"Raoul! Isn't that interesting?"

Oswald felt a smile tug at his lips. "Very interesting indeed…" he muttered.

"Go tell Mooney! I'll see you tonight!"

There was a click and the line went dead. Oswald could feel his stomach twist with anxious excitement. Finally that jerk would get what he deserved.

He excitedly leaped from the bar, knocking the ledger off the counter in the process and spilling random bits of paper out of it in the process. He began to leave it and rush off to Mooney's office, but thought better of it. Good news was no excuse for sloppiness.

Dropping to his knees, he began picking them up hurriedly and shoving them back into the book. Phone numbers, business cards, random notes…

One caught his eye, a phone number with the current commissioner's name scrawled on it. Not a business card. Not a even a piece of paper, but a torn napkin with this precious information. Oswald felt a tug in his stomach and an itch in his fingertips tempting him to take it, but he resisted and slipped it back into the book as well. There were more pressing matters to attend to then his snooping.

Replacing the book on the counter, he stumbled with excitement back to Fish Mooney's office. He almost skidded into the door when he reached it. _Pause. Knock. Don't be so-_

"You did good Butch…you…did…gooooood."

He heard Mooney's drawling praise through the door and his hand froze just before knocking. What could she be talking about? Should he interrupt? Curiosity filled him and removed all hesitation as he knocked sharply on the door. Surely she would include him in whatever was going on as well? Or at least the worst she could do was not fill him in.

"Who is it?" Her sharp call interrupted his thoughts and immediately made him second guess himself.

"Ummm…i-it's Osw-wald, M-m-miss Mooney," he stammered. Normally he would hate himself for showing such inferiority, but on this occasion, he felt that playing it up might be to his benefit. The last thing he would want is to be thought of as eavesdropping.

"Oswald…" he heard her purr. Suddenly, the door was yanked open revealing a smirking Miss Mooney and confused Butch. "Come in." She bared her teeth into a grin and reached out to grab him by the tie, slowly leading him into the room. Oswald gulped, suddenly feeling hot under the collar. There was something so seductive, yet so dangerous about her when she did things like this. Like a lioness playing with her food before she eats it.

"Uh, Boss?" Butch started, putting something behind his back and eyeing Oswald uneasily. A look that Oswald could definitely get used to. If he had been curious before, he was about to burst now.

"Now Butch, we trust our little Oswald don't we?"Fish released her hold on his tie and touched his face with her fingertips, tracing his cheekbone with delicate fingers and sharp gold nails. "After all, he delivered seduced our newest family member into joining us didn't he?"

Oswald winced at the accusation but said nothing. He didn't like the idea of using Nicki, or tricking her. She was one of the few people he considered a friend and not a means to an end. Actually, she was probably the only one, save Mother.

"What does she call you?" Fish continued, her fingers moving up to brush his bangs out of his eyes. She met his gaze pointedly before continuing. "Oz?"

He tried to remain neutral, but felt himself blush. She smirked. "Sometimes I'm not entirely sure which of you is the cat and which is the mouse. You seem awful taken with her…"

 _You're the cat,_ Oswald thought bitterly. _You're always the cat. And we're just caged mice you get to play with._

"I was almost worried for a while that-"

He caught her hand and smiled at her, trying his best to look sincere. "She's a nice girl, but you know that no one will ever match you Miss Mooney. My loyalties are with you."

She smiled back, a smug grin. "Good. That's what I like to hear. And that's why I trust you with this."

She waved her hand at Butch, who hesitated, but reluctantly brought what he was hiding out from behind his back. A pearl necklace in a Ziploc bag full of a white powdery substance that Oswald could guess the nature of. It was beautiful.

"Look at what Butch got for me," Fish praised, taking the bag gingerly and gazing at it with a loving look.

"It will look lovely on you," Oswald offered, unsure of reason for Butch's secrecy.

Fish chuckled. "Oh I'm not going to wear it…it's a gift…for a friend." She gave Oswald a wink. He gave a weak laugh, unsure of what she meant. He only knew that it sounded sinister. Before he could inquire more, she held the bag out for Butch to take and furrowed her eyebrows at Oswald. "What was it you wanted again?"


End file.
